Plan seeks 30 pct growth in outsourcing

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

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.