Zhejiang companies are turning their attention to research and development (R&D) of new products and technologies to further boost the overall economic transformation in Zhejiang, cztv.com reports.

Data from Zhejiang Provincial Bureau of Statistics indicate that the province recorded a GDP growth rate of eight percent in the first half of the year as a result of investment increase in R&D.

The data showed that expenditure on scientific and technological development by enterprises with processing capacity above 20 million yuan in annual business volume grew over 20 percent compared with the same period in 2016.

A new medicine developed by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd got approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in May this year, making its appearance in the US market. It was Huahai’s third patented drug to receive approval by the FDA.

Chen Baohua, general manager of Huahai said the company is currently researching over 150 kinds of drugs and about 40 of them will apply for patents in the US.

Thanks to the strong R&D power, Huawei saw an increase of 25 percent in its sales revenue from January to June and a growth of 22 percent in profits.

Researchers test new drugs at the laboratory of Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd. [Photo/ huahaipharm.com]

Zhejiang Hanpu Power Technology Co Ltd is a manufacturer of smart electrical products. In the past few years, Hanpu invested eight percent of its annual sales income into research and development of new products.

At the beginning of the year, a smart transducer for electric generators capable of correcting short circuits automatically was developed by the company. Wang Xiang, director of Hanpu’s R&D department, said the efficiency of the product was greatly improved and as a result, it was priced much higher.

Zhou Guohui, director of the Science Technology Department of Zhejiang praised the high-tech companies for leading enterprises above designated size with a growth rate of 40.3 percent.

Patents applied by high-tech companies account for 64 percent of the province’s total, which means they have been a major engine for scientific and technological innovation in Zhejiang, according to Zhou.