Korean Media: Export Value Reaches 11.32 Billion Yuan in the First Quarter, China's New Rise!
On June 8, South Korean media outlet Edaily published an article stating that China, once the world's largest consumer of robots, has now risen to become a major exporter of robots. With accelerating research and development in robot technology and a growing number of manufacturing enterprises, China has secured its export competitiveness. China now holds an absolute share in the humanoid robot market and ranks closely behind advanced countries like Japan in the overall robotics industry.
In the first quarter of this year, China exported robots to 148 countries and regions worldwide, with a total value reaching 11.32 billion RMB. The data were compiled by categorizing the robotics industry into segments such as industrial robots, cleaning robots, and service robots.
Among these categories, cleaning robots accounted for 68.5% of the total export value in the first quarter—amounting to 7.75 billion RMB. Industrial robot exports reached 3.16 billion RMB, marking a year-on-year increase of 42%.
Historically, China has been viewed as a major consumer market for robots, especially industrial robots. According to data from the International Federation of Robotics, China added approximately 295,000 new industrial robots in 2024, accounting for about 54% of the global total. Chinese robotics companies hold 57% of the domestic market share, while the remaining half relies on imports.
For industrial robot exports in 2024, Japan led with 1.3 billion USD (21.4%), followed by Germany at 639 million USD (10.7%), and China ranked third with 573 million USD (9.6%). The relatively low export volume is due to domestic demand exceeding production capacity. However, China’s robot output is steadily increasing. Last year, China became a net exporter of robots for the first time, with exports surpassing imports—a growth of 48.7% year-on-year. This year, with cleaning robots now officially included within the robotics industry category, the export scale has expanded further.
China has already taken a leading position in the humanoid robot market. Data from market research firm IDC shows that global humanoid robot shipments totaled around 18,000 units last year, with China’s AIYUAN Robotics and Unitree Robotics ranking first (5,100 units) and second (4,800 units), respectively. China’s share in the humanoid robot market exceeds 60%.
Experts noted: “As the world’s largest manufacturing nation, China leverages its most comprehensive industrial system to quickly grasp global market trends. In recent years, as the global trend toward factory automation accelerates, demand for robots continues to grow, driving an increase in high-value-added product exports and thereby boosting overall export growth.”
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1867414211360771/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) alone.