Ocean economic development index continues growth

The China Ocean Economic Development Index, which gauges nation's ocean economic development, rose to 125.2 in 2024, up 2.3 percent year on year, according to a report released by the Ministry of Natural Resources, the latest example of the strong momentum of the marine economy with high-quality development.

The index came as Sunday marked the 17th World Oceans Day and China's 18th National Ocean Awareness Day.

The index covers key areas including scale and efficiency, structural optimization and upgrading, and resource conservation and utilization, according to China Media Group (CMG).

In detail, the development scale and efficiency sub-index was 125.2, an increase of 2.0 percent over the previous year, which showed the total volume of the marine economy reached a new level and development efficiency returned to an upward trend.

The structural optimization and upgrading sub-index was 131.0, up 1.8 percent from the previous year. The added value of emerging marine industries increased by 7.2 percent year-on-year, and the added value of marine manufacturing was 3.2 trillion yuan ($445 billion), accounting for more than 30 percent of the marine sector's GDP.

The foreign economic and trade sub-index was 121.3, up 3.7 percent from the previous year. Many indicators, such as total maritime import and export volume, international container throughput, and ship export value, hit record highs, which showed that foreign economic and trade cooperation in the marine field continued to expand, and high-level opening-up achieved remarkable results, the report said.

China's ocean economy has seen robust growth and innovation across marine resource development, marine manufacturing — including shipbuilding and supporting infrastructure — and ocean-related exports, with trade becoming increasingly active, Dong Shaopeng, a senior research fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Sunday.

The index also echoed the 2024 China Marine Economy Statistical Bulletin released by China's Ministry of Natural Resources in February, which said that China's total marine production topped 10 trillion yuan for the first time in 2024, and China's technological innovation capabilities in the field of ocean energy development and utilization entered the world's first echelon.

The bulletin also said that the marine economy reached 10.54 trillion yuan in 2024, a 5.9-percent year-on-year increase, and contributed 0.4 percentage points to national economic growth.

The ballast role of marine manufacturing continued to strengthen in 2024, with the sector's added value reaching 3.18 trillion yuan, accounting for more than 30 percent of the gross ocean product.

The marine services sector played a key role in driving economic growth in 2024, with added value reaching 6.28 trillion yuan — accounting for 59.6 percent of the gross ocean product.

"China is advancing marine conservation alongside sustainable development," Dong told the Global Times. "The ocean's ecosystems are irreplaceable — once damaged, they're difficult to restore. Through marine ranches, we can meet consumer demand for seafood like fish and kelp, while preserving the surrounding waters and minimizing human impact."