Transaction of Technology Import in the First 2 Months in 2006

According to statistics of the Ministry of Commerce, China totally signed 1577 contracts of technology import in the first 2 months in 2006 and total contract value amounted to US$4.9 billion, up by 157.7% on a year-on-year basis. Technology fee reached US$1.88 billion, accounting for 38.4% of total value of contracts. Value of technology import in Feb. was US$3.07 billion, hitting a new high among all single months.

　　In the first 2 months of 2006, transaction value of joint-venture or cooperation production with content of technology import amounted to US$2.02 billion, up by 25 times on a year-on-year basis and accounting for 41.1% of total value of contracts. Import of complete set and key equipments and contract value for licensing of proprietary technology were US$980 million and US$940 million respectively, accounting for 19.9% and 19.3% respectively of total value of technology import.

　　Japan was the biggest source of China's technology import in the first 2 months in 2006. Value of technology import contracts between China and Japan hit US$2.33 billion, up by 3.4 times and accounting for 47.5% of total contracts of technology import. EU and Korea ranked No. 2 and 3, and value reached US$1.54 billion and US$310 million respectively, accounting for 31.5% and 6.3% respectively of total contract value.

　　In the first 2 months, total value of technology import by state-owned enterprises amounted to US$3.15 billion with a year-on-year increase of over 5 times, and by foreign investment enterprises were US$1.65 billion, accounting for 64.3% and 33.7% respectively of total value of technology import of China.

　　Import of complete set and key equipments such as Railway locomotives drove up the high-speed increase of technology import. Railway transportation became the industry with the biggest increase rate in national technology import. In the first 2 months of 2006, railway transportation totally imported US$2.49 billion technology, up by 52 times on a year-on-year basis, accounting for 50% of total contract value of technology import in the industry of complete set and key equipments. In the same period, technology import in electronic and telecommunications equipment manufacture and transport equipment manufacture amounted to US$650 million and US$340 million respectively, accounting for 13.3% and 6.9% respectively and ranking No. 2 and 3.