China's low-altitude economy is entering a phase of rapid growth, offering people more excitement in the skies and bringing convenience through innovative aerial vehicle applications.
Various aerial vehicles are increasingly employed in China in more diversified scenarios.
In east China's Jiangsu Province, a domestically produced two-ton unmanned electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft successfully completed a flight across a stretch of the Yangtze River in early August, with its highest speed at 200 kilometers per hour.
The cutting-edge "air taxi" service of eVTOL aircraft, developed by a Shanghai-based start-up named AutoFlight, is expected to gain traction as it can provide a viable and affordable transportation option for tourists and commuters.
In Wuxi City of the province, aerial routes offer a unique perspective of the scenic ancient canal, demonstrating the potential of low-altitude flights for tourism.
In Chengdu City of southwest China's Sichuan Province, a cross-border e-commerce imported goods package was delivered via drone from the comprehensive bonded zone to a customer in just two minutes.
The State Council has just issued a document on ideas to promote the high-quality development of service consumption, proposing to encourage the development of new business models such as low-altitude flight. This is undoubtedly a clear signal that will further enrich the "low-altitude plus" application scenarios.
In the first half of this year, China registered over 600,000 new drones, resulting in a 48-percent increase in the number of drones from the end of last year.
Currently, over 14,000 drone companies hold valid civil unmanned aircraft operation certificates, and over 225,000 people possess unmanned drone operator licenses.
Last year, the scale of China's low-altitude economy surpassed 500 billion yuan (around 70 billion U.S. dollars), with the first half of this year generating 300 billion yuan (around 42 billion U.S. dollars) in new output value. Its scale is expected to reach 2 trillion yuan (around 279 billion U.S. dollars) by 2030.
Booming low-altitude economy has more application scenarios
Booming low-altitude economy has more application scenarios
Long-standing challenges in Mexico's automotive industry have been exacerbated with the implementation of the U.S. tariff on imported cars, which took effect Thursday, fueling uncertainty and job losses.
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on all imported automobiles.
Ciudad Juarez, one of Mexico's largest trade ports and a key manufacturing hub, is now facing even greater challenges as rising trade protectionism deepens existing pressures.
At a medal parts manufacturing factory that has been in operation for over 30 years, the workforce has drastically reduced from 60 workers to just 25 due to uncertainty about the future.
Even before the U.S. tariffs on imported cars took effect, mounting pressure had already begun to ripple through the industry, prompting many companies to suspend investment and procurement plans.
"Some 95 percent of the products exported from Chihuahua, where Ciudad Juarez is located, are industrial manufactured goods. We have held multiple meetings to discuss solutions. In fact, over the past year and a half, more than 55,000 factory workers here in the city have lost their jobs," said the owner of the factory.
The automotive industry is a key pillar of Mexico's economy, generating nearly 100 billion U.S. dollars in output. The auto parts assembly industry alone provides over 900,000 jobs for the country, while automotive assembly companies create 175,000 jobs.
According to statistics from the Mexican Association of Automotive Dealers (AMDA), over 40 percent of the components used by American auto manufacturers are imported from Mexico. Last year, Mexico produced four million cars, approximately three million of which were exported to the U.S.
Industry insiders indicate that due to the high degree of interdependence in the sector between the U.S. and Mexico, along with a shortage of skilled labor, the U.S. goal of bringing automotive manufacturing back to its shores through tariffs is unlikely to be realized in the short term.
Moreover, the established industrial chain in Mexico faces the risk of being disrupted, which will ultimately have repercussions on consumer spending and further exacerbate inflation in the long run.
"Young people from the U.S. are no longer willing to work in the manufacturing sector. I believe there will be no growth in the relocation of automotive parts and vehicles factories in the short term," said Guillermo Rosales Zarate, ADMA's executive president.
"Personally, I hope this avalanche of tariffs doesn't continue; otherwise, it will lead to more significant issues affecting the U.S. economy. If these tariffs remain in place long-term, it will be the American people who suffer the most," said Ricardo Ramos, a professor with the Autonomous University of Ciudad Juarez.
U.S. automotive tariffs deepen industry pressures, halt investments in Mexico
