By Kate Yuan

(JW Insights) Aug 14 -- China’s listed companies spent RMB1.64 trillion ($228 billion) on research and development programs in 2022, marking a 2.6-fold increase over the past five years, Nikkei Asia reported on August 13.

In 2022, the total number of researchers in China exceeded 6 million, maintaining its position as the world's leader for several consecutive years, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics.

Jiangsu Shemar Electric (江苏神马), listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2019, has developed a safer, lighter polymer insulator that has a longer life. This new insulator has made the company a world-leading company in the field. The company has captured a market share of 90% in the U.S. and Europe, according to its vice president Wu Jing.

Jiangsu Shemar is just one of many companies in China that are boosting their R&D programs to become more competitive. Their strength is in their sheer scale. China's listed companies have a total of 3.08 million researchers and other staff working in R&D. Jiangsu Shemar has 216 of them, accounting for 14% of its workforce.

Chinese automaker BYD has the biggest R&D team of 69,697 staff, including 590 holders of doctorate degrees and 7,827 with master's degrees. A considerable number of them have studied at top-notch universities in the U.S. and Europe. With such a capable workforce, BYD has developed products such as the advanced-safety and high-capacity "blade battery" using lithium iron phosphate.

Hygon Information Technology is another example. The company develops semiconductors for central processing units and artificial intelligence. Its R&D personnel account for 90% of its workforce. Such staff at this company earn an average annual income of RMB890,000 ($123,812), even though most of them are only in their 20s and 30s, said the Nikkei Asia report.