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Made in China 2035: will it topple US hi-tech, military manufacturing in 10 years?

‘Irreversible’ US production declines amid an expanding Chinese economy will thrust world into ‘a new era’, says government adviser Lu Yongxiang

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In 2010, China’s manufacturing output surpassed the US according to the Chinese government, which cited statistics from the World Bank. Photo: AFP
Stephen Chenin Beijing

China will overtake the United States in hi-tech and advanced military manufacturing within a decade, according to a prominent Chinese strategist.

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“Overall, the decline of the US manufacturing industry and its weakened competitiveness in the global market have become an irreversible trend,” said Lu Yongxiang, former vice-chairman of the National People’s Congress, in a commentary published in the Chinese Journal of Mechanical Engineering on September 9.

Lu, who is also former president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, is known for his foresight as a mechanical engineer, and has been influential in helping to shape the Chinese government’s long-term development strategies.

He has also served as the director of the expert advisory board for the “Made in China 2025” programme under the State Council, China’s cabinet.

While the US has maintained its lead in hi-tech and advanced military equipment production, its advantages are rapidly diminishing, according to Lu.

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“It is estimated that by 2035, ‘Made in China’ will surpass the United States and become the global leader,” Lu said in the article.

Lu also predicted that China’s economy will be larger than America’s by that time. “The world will enter a new era,” he added.

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