The busy Qingdao Port in Shandong province. [Photo by Yu Fangping/For chinadaily.com.cn]

Qingdao, a coastal city in East China's Shandong province, will focus on cultivating and developing new productive forces, strategically managing the ocean and deepening reform and opening up.

"New productive forces" will play a pivotal role in the nation's pursuit of high-quality development and should be positioned as a key mission by major corporations, especially State-owned enterprises, to help drive the nation's modernization, said a political advisor during the ongoing two sessions in Beijing.

Currently, Qingdao is promoting industrial innovation through technological innovation, focusing on disruptive and cutting-edge technologies to foster new productive forces. It is first establishing 10 emerging industrial chains, including integrated circuits and new displays, and proactively laying the groundwork for future industries such as genetics, cell technology, and aerospace information. Accelerating the advancement of new industrialization, new productive forces are rapidly gathering momentum.

This year, Qingdao aims to fully leverage its comparative advantages, drive industrial innovation through technological innovation, and implement the "Empower Qingdao" initiative. It will continue to transform and upgrade traditional industries, nurture and expand emerging and future industries, and accelerate the development of modern service industries. Tailoring to local conditions, the city will also promote the development of new industries, models, and dynamic forces, actively driving industrial high-end, intelligent, and green transformation.

As a city with abundant marine resources, Qingdao will beef up efforts to build itself into a leading modern marine city. Over the years, Qingdao's marine GDP has consistently ranked third in the country, and in 2023, its marine GDP exceeded 530 billion yuan ($73.68 billion), accounting for approximately 30 percent of the province's total marine GDP.

According to local authorities, this year, Qingdao will strive to become a pioneering test area for a community of shared marine destiny and accelerate the construction of 140 key marine projects with a total investment of 210 billion yuan.