The number of patent applications from China was nearly twice the total filed by the U.S. and Japan in 2015, indicating the country's innovation sector is catching up, an economist at UBS told a press briefing in Beijing on Wednesday.
China applied for a total of 968,000 patents in 2015, surpassing 288,000 from the U.S. and 259,000 from Japan in the same year, a UBS report showed, citing data from the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Huawei applied for the largest number of patents in the world in 2015, with 3,898 filings.
"The large number of patents means more advanced products and high-paid jobs. Hence, the country may follow development modes similar to Japan and South Korea rather than falling into a middle-income 'trap' like Latin American countries," Deng Tishun, Regional CIO Greater China & Chief China Strategist at UBS, said at the briefing.
China's research and development (R&D) investment-GDP ratio reached 2 percent in 2014, compared with a ratio of 0.5 percent 20 years ago.
China has been pushing its economy toward one based on consumption and services and away from heavy industries.
However, the country's economic focus "will likely be on maintaining stability and reasonable growth, while reforms will be gradual," as 2017 is a critical year for political transition, UBS said in a press release sent to the Global Times on Wednesday.
Deng anticipated China's economic growth is likely to moderate to 6.4 percent in 2017 from 6.7 percent in 2016.
