BEIJING - China will seek to develop new competitive advantages in the mechanical, electronics, and hi-tech industries, Jiang Yaoping, vice-minister of commerce, said on Wednesday.

The ministry and industrial branches "will speed up the cultivation of new competitive advantages intrinsically supported by technology, brand, quality, and service," Jiang told a working conference in Zhengzhou, Henan province.

"More effort will be given to support the build-up of automobile and shipping export bases, as well as innovation bases for technology to promote trade," Jiang said, adding that 200 export hubs serving 25 industries and 2,000 affiliated companies will be established during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015)".

Owing to shrinking overseas demand and rising costs, China's mechanical, electronics, and hi-tech products will have difficulty promoting exports in 2012, Jiang said.

Mechanical and electronics products, which have been China’s leading export for 17 years, reached $1.08 trillion, accounting for 57 percent of China's overall exports, according to the ministry.

"Despite the current challenging situation, China's exports and imports of mechanical, electronics and hi-tech products still have great potential. Exports of mechanical and electronics products accounted for only 15 percent of the global market. But China's imports of mechanical and electronics products will reach $4 trillion by the 12th Five-Year Plan, implying a promising market scope," Jiang said.