China has been strengthening large-scale equipment upgrades in the industrial sector this year, promoting industrial development and the green transformation while unleashing potential domestic demand, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
Investment in equipment, tools and instruments increased by 16.4 percent year on year in the first three quarters of 2024, with especially high growth in the production of high-tech and high-value-added products such as AI chips and servers.
"Large-scale equipment upgrades are not just short-term economic stimulus measures, but also medium and long-term measures consolidating the foundations of the economy. Through this policy stimulus, the space for updating these idle assets will be opened up, promoting the development of the economy and injecting over five trillion yuan (about 691.3 billion U.S. dollars) into economic development," said Fan Meng, director of the Industrial Investment Research Office at the Planning Research Institute of the CCID Consulting under the MIIT.
According to the MIIT, China will carry out large-scale equipment upgrades in 27 key industrial sectors in the next step, including petrochemical and chemical industries, the iron and steel industry, auto industry, industrial robotics and shipbuilding industry.
Upgrades of Chinese industrial equipment accelerate through 2024
A trilateral meeting between delegations from Russia, the United States, and Ukraine began on Friday evening at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) foreign ministry said.
The meeting marks the first trilateral engagement since the conflict began in 2022.
Participants include senior officials from all three sides, among them U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump; Russia's military intelligence chief Igor Kostyukov; and senior Ukrainian officials, including Kyrylo Budanov, the chief of staff of the Ukrainian president, and Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.
The talks followed hours of overnight discussions between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump's envoys, which the Kremlin described as "constructive, extremely candid and useful for both Russia and the United States".
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that Ukrainian diplomatic team reported almost every hour from the UAE. They were discussing the parameters for ending the war.
Ukraine's position is clear, he said, adding that he has defined the framework for dialogue for their delegation.
As for the substance of Friday's discussions, it is still too early to draw conclusions, he said, and they will see how the conversation develops on Saturday and what results would come.
He also noted that Andriy Hnatov, chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and Vadym Skibitsky, deputy chief of Ukraine's Defense Intelligence will join the talks on Saturday.
UAE hosts first Russia-US-Ukraine talks since start of conflict
