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Chinese companies and researchers filed a record 22031 patent applications with the European Patent Office in 2025, with China rising to third place for the first time.
That is according to the Office's Technology Dashboard 2025.
The figure marked a year-on-year increase of 97 and accounted for 109 of all applications filed at the European Patent Office, making China the fastest-growing country among the top ten filing countries.
Digital communication was the field with the highest number of patent applications from China.
Transport and semiconductors were were the fastest growing fields for Chinese filings, with both posting year-on-year growth of more than 30.
In terms of company rankings, Chinese tech giant Huawei ranked second among all companies filing patent applications at the office in 2025, with 4744 applications.
Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Company ranked 10th with 1305 applications, marking the first time that two Chinese companies entered the top 10.
Overall, a record 201974 patent applications were filed at the European Patent Office in 2025, up 14 from the previous year.
Computer technology remained the leading field, with the report attributing the growth to a rise in patent applications related to artificial intelligence.
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China aims to have 100,000 fuel cell vehicles nationwide by 2030, double the 2025 level.
That is, according to A circular jointly issued by three departments, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
The circular, which focuses on piloting the comprehensive application of hydrogen energy, sets a goal of cutting end-user hydrogen prices to below 25 yuan about 36 US dollars per kilogram by 2030 and around 15 yuan in advantageous regions, while fostering hydrogen power as a new driver of economic growth.
The ministry noted that China's hydrogen industry has progressed from zero to one, but still faces challenges such as limited application scenarios, high costs and difficulties in storage and transportation.
The pilot program will prioritize fuel cell vehicles, hydrogen-powered industrial applications and innovative uses of hydrogen.
According to the document, pilots should be applied by city clusters as the main participants.
The central government will provide reward funds to these city clusters, with each pilot period lasting four years.
The maximum reward for a single city cluster during the pilot period will not exceed 16 billion yuan.
The ministry added that, by the end of 2025, nearly 40000 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles had been sold nationwide and 574 hydrogen refueling stations with a combined daily refueling capacity of over three hundred and sixty tons had been built, placing china among the world's leading countries in the sector.
Construction of a new airport in south China's Guangdong province has recently begun, adding a new aviation hub to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau-Greater Bay area.
The new airport is located in Gaoming District of Foshan City, at the geographical centre of Foshan Jiaoqing, Jiangmen and Yunfu cities.
It is expected to directly serve a population of over 20 million.
The project will include two widely spaced parallel runways, a terminal building covering around two hundred and sixty thousand square meters and ninety-four aircraft stands.
It is designed to handle an annual passenger throughput of thirty million, a cargo and mail throughput of five hundred thousand tons and two hundred and sixty thousand aircraft take-offs and landings.
According to an official with the guangdong airport authority, Existing transport airports in the Greater Bay Area are mainly located in the eastern part of the Pearl River Delta.
The new airport will serve as a transportation hub for the western part of the region.
In 2024.
The GDP of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area surpassed that of both the New York Bay Area and the San Francisco Bay Area, positioning it among the world's leading bay areas.
According to operational data released by seven major airports in the region, airports in the Greater Bay Area reported exceptional performance in 2025, handling over 230 million passenger trips and approximately 97 million tons of cargo and mail.
The figures consolidated the region's status as one of the world's leading aviation hub clusters.
The Airports Council international projects that air passenger demand in the Greater Bay Area will rise to 420 million by 2035.
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