Plan Seeks 30% Growth in Outsourcing

China aims to grow its outsourcing industry by 30 percent annually through 2015, the Ministry of Commerce said Monday.

The offshore revenue will likely hit US$85 billion by 2015 as envisaged in the master plan for the outsourcing industry in the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), the ministry said.

Outsourcing, which has grown into a strategic business in China over the past few years, subcontracts a certain process of production, such as designing, packaging, or information management, to a third-party company.

In China over 70 percent of services outsourcing are from companies based overseas. With the global economic conditions staying weak, China has become a major provider of outsourcing services due to its relatively low production and labor costs.

During the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010), China's outsourcing industry had grown to account for nearly one-tenth by value of services trade. The offshore outsourcing income was US$14.4 billion in 2010.

The industry should target more value-added outsourcing services, higher technology and self-developed innovation up to 2015, according to the ministry.