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Machinery Sector Fuels Development
The machine building sector has become one of the best foreign exchange earners of China over the past five years, Friday's Chinadaily reported.
According to the newspaper, the machine building sector exported 5.6 billion US dollars of products in 1999, compared with 3.9 billion US dollars in 1996.
Exported products in later years were more technical. Electronic and machinery products and completed equipment took the lion's share of the exports to countries such as the United States, Sweden, the Philippines, Malaysia and Pakistan.
Some key enterprises, such as Changchun-based First Automotive Works, also established manufacturing bases abroad.
According to China Daily, the machine building sector has contributed significantly to the country's rapid economic growth over the past five years.
The sector's industrial added value increased to 138.3 billion yuan (16.7 billion US dollars) last year from 119.8 billion yuan (14.4 billion US dollars) in 1996. It is expected to reach 150 billion yuan (18.1 billion US dollars) this year.
Output of digital-controled machine tools, which are vital for the country's manufacturing industry, increased by 13.1 percent over 1998 to 5,970 units last year.
The sector is developing the 700-megawatt hydropower generation units for the construction of the country's mammoth Three Gorges dam project, the newspaper said.
The sector also sped up development of rail and environment protection equipment to meet mounting demand.
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