(Photo: Xinhua)

China released its annual Ocean Economic Development Index (OEDI) on Nov. 22 at a national marine economy expo held in Zhanjiang, south China’s Guangdong province, announcing a 6.9-percent rise of gross oceanic product in 2017 over the previous year.

The report indicated a steady progress of China’s marine economy from 2010 to 2017 during which OEDI grew at an annual rate of 3.8 percent on average. The latest 2017 figure stood at 129.8, up 4.5 percent than that of the previous year.

In 2017, China’s total output value of marine produce contributed 9.7 percent to the national economic growth. China’s trade volume with countries along the Marine Silk Road totaled $1 trillion for the whole year, a rise of 14.8 percent from the previous year after seeing a two-year decline.

Furthermore, enterprises in marine sectors saw a surge in productivity benefits in 2017, and also a 5 percent decrease of costs compared to last year. Marine industries employed a total of 36.57 million workers, accounting for 4.7 percent of the national employment figures.