(Yicai Global) Feb. 24 -- The number of high-tech research and development projects in Shanghai that began mass production last year jumped 35 percent from the year before, according to the annual research report of the Shanghai Technology Innovation Center.

Some 751 high-tech R&D projects entered mass production in 2022, compared with 556 in 2021, the report showed. The newly industrialized projects covered many new tech fields, including electronic information, biology and new medicine, new materials, advanced manufacturing, and automation.

The increase marks the latest milestone in Shanghai’s high-tech transformation since the city issued policy documents for the recognition of high-end R&D projects and the management of special government support funds for such projects in November 2020. The policies have boosted key support for new drugs, medical device R&D, and integrated circuit design projects.

Some 57 percent of the high-end R&D projects recognized by the government in 2021 have the potential to replace foreign products or fill domestic gaps.

The high-end R&D projects recognized in 2021 are expected to bring new output value of CNY105.7 billion (USD15.3 billion) in the next three years, with an average of more than CNY190 million (USD27.4 million) per project, a person in charge of the Shanghai Technology Innovation Center said, adding that the input-output ratio is expected to reach 1 to 8.9.

Editor: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione