A few days ago, the National Bureau of Statistics, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Finance jointly issued the “Statistical Bulletin of National Science and Technology Expenditures in 2020”, which was interpreted by Zhang Qilong, a statistician from the Department of Social Sciences and Humanities of the National Bureau of Statistics.
1. The investment in research and experimental development (R&D) has reached a new high, and the intensity of investment continues to increase.
The “Communiqué” data shows that my country will be in 2020 The total R&D expenditure exceeded 2.4 trillion yuan, reaching 243.931 billion yuan, an increase of 224.95 billion yuan over the previous year, an increase of 10.2%, continuing the double-digit growth since the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, but it was affected by factors such as the new crown pneumonia epidemic , The growth rate dropped by 2.3 percentage points from the previous year. Since the growth rate of R&D expenditure is 7.2 percentage points faster than the current GDP growth rate, the R&D expenditure investment intensity (ratio to GDP) reached 2.40%, an increase of 0.16 percentage points from the previous year, and the rate of increase hit a new high in the past 11 years.
From an international comparison, my country’s R&D funding has shown steady progress. First, the total volume has grown steadily. In 2020, my country’s total R&D funding will be approximately 54% of the United States[1], 2.1 times that of Japan, ranking second in the world; from 2016 to 2019, my country’s average annual net increase in R&D funding will exceed 200 billion yuan, about G7 The country[2] accounts for 60% of the total annual average increase, which has become the main force driving the growth of global R&D funding. The second is the global leader in growth rate. From 2016 to 2019, my country’s R&D expenditure increased by an average annual rate of 11.8%, which was much faster than the United States (7.3%), Japan (0.7%) and other technological powerhouses. The third is to speed up the intensity of catch-up. Among the world’s major economies, my country’s R&D investment intensity has risen from the 16th in the world in 2016 to the 12th, which is close to the average level of OECD countries.
Second, the driving role of the enterprise has been enhanced, and the coordinated development of the region has been further consolidated
(1) The driving role of the enterprise has been further enhanced. In 2020, corporate R&D expenditures will be 1,867.38 billion yuan, an increase of 10.4% over the previous year; the proportion of national R&D expenditures will reach 76.6%, and its contribution to national growth will reach 77.9%, an increase of 0.2 and 9.4 percentage points over the previous year, respectively, which will further promote Enhanced. Among them, the R&D expenditure of industrial enterprises above designated size was 1,527.13 billion yuan, an increase of 9.3% over the previous year;(The ratio to operating income, the same below) was 1.41%, an increase of 0.09% over the previous year. The intensity of R&D funding in key areas has steadily increased, creating conditions for key core technology research and industrial basic capabilities. Among the industries above designated size, the R&D expenditure for high-tech manufacturing was 464.91 billion yuan, and the investment intensity was 2.67%, an increase of 0.26 percentage points over the previous year; the equipment manufacturing R&D expenditure was 913.03 billion yuan, and the investment intensity was 2.22%, an increase of 0.15 over the previous year. Percentage points.
(2) R&D investment in the central and western regions is increasing well. In 2020, my country’s eastern, central, and western regions[3] R&D expenditures will be 1,651.73 billion yuan, 466.29 billion yuan, and 321.29 billion yuan, respectively, representing an increase of 9.2%, 12.0%, and 12.4% over the previous year. The central and western regions have experienced 4 consecutive growth rates. It surpassed the eastern region in 2016, and the catching-up trend is obvious. The number of provinces with R&D expenditures exceeding 100 billion yuan reached eight, an increase of two over the previous year. From the perspective of key regions, the R&D expenditures in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and Yangtze River Delta regions were 344.60 billion yuan and 736.47 billion yuan respectively, an increase of 5.6% and 9.5% over the previous year; R&D expenditure in the Yangtze River Economic Belt reached 116.82 billion yuan, an increase of 10.7 over the previous year %, the growth rate is faster than the national average.
3. Fundamental research funding keeps growing, and its proportion is basically stable
(1) Fundamental research funding growth slows down. In 2020, my country’s basic research funding will be 146.70 billion yuan, an increase of 9.8% over the previous year, and the growth rate has fallen by 12.7 percentage points from the previous year; it accounts for 6.01% of R&D funding, and has remained above 6% for two consecutive years.
(2) The growth rate of colleges and universities has fallen. Institutions of higher learning and government-owned research institutions are the two main executive bodies of basic research activities in my country. Affected by the epidemic, the resumption of school and work is relatively delayed, which has a certain impact on some scientific research activities. In 2020, the funds for basic research of colleges and universities and government-owned research institutions will be 72.48 billion yuan and 57.39 billion yuan, an increase of 0.4% and 12.5% respectively over the previous year, and the growth rate will fall by 22.0 and 8.1 percentage points respectively. The national basic research funding growth contribution rate decreased from 89.6% in the previous year to 50.4%, which is the main reason for the slowdown in basic research growth.
Fourth, the innovation support policy has achieved results, and financial technology expenditures have declined due to the impact of the epidemic
(1) The effect of policy support is evident. With the further improvement of the R&D expenses deduction policy, in 2020, enterprises above designated size will enjoy R&D expenses plus deduction and tax exemption amounting to 242.19 billion yuan, an increase over the previous year 29.4%. Relevant surveys show that companies’ recognition of this policy is as high as 87.7%, an increase of 2.7% over the previous year. The use of “tax cuts” instead of “direct subsidies” to support innovation policies has achieved good results, and the enthusiasm of corporate research and development activities has continued to increase, and the scale The above-mentioned R&D activities accounted for 28.4% of enterprises, an increase of 2% over the previous year. The relevant departments have clearly increased the percentage of manufacturing enterprises’ R&D deductions from 75% to 100%, which is expected to drive enterprises to further increase investment in technological innovation. Technical capabilities and the level of the industrial chain supply chain.
(2) Financial expenditures on science and technology have declined. According to the national financial final accounts data, the national financial science and technology expenditures in 2020 will be 1009.5 billion yuan This was a decrease of 62.24 billion yuan or 5.8% over the previous year. Among them, the central government’s science and technology expenditure was 375.82 billion yuan, a decrease of 9.9%, accounting for 37.2% of the fiscal science and technology expenditure; the local government’s science and technology expenditure was 633.68 billion yuan, a decrease 3.2%, accounting for 62.8%. The central and local fiscal expenditures on science and technology declined, mainly due to the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic. In that year, some financial support science and technology projects were delayed or suspended.
2020 is an extraordinary year. Faced with the impact of the epidemic and the complex and severe domestic and foreign environments, China’s R&D funding has maintained rapid growth, providing a strong guarantee for fighting the epidemic and building a well-off society in all respects. In the future, While continuing to expand the scale of funding input, it is necessary to further optimize the funding structure and improve the quality and efficiency of input. First, optimize government funding, and on the basis of maintaining growth, further focus on the most urgent major needs for economic and social development and focus on key areas. Prioritize key industries, improve budget management and appropriation methods, and give full play to the “baton” role. The second is to give full play to the role of the main body of the enterprise, encourage enterprises to further increase investment in original innovation and independent research, and strengthen production through the establishment of innovation consortiums, etc. Cooperation between universities and research institutes to enhance the combat power of the “main force”. The third is to improve the diversified investment mechanism of the whole society, improve the sources of funds such as social donations, venture capital, and financial technology products, vigorously develop new research and development institutions, and create a “diversified” ecology.