China industry & products

China’s specialist manufacturers: a business opportunity for European expertise

2026-10-12 · Nexus Editorial

More than 140,000 recognised specialist SMEs form a substantial manufacturing base. European partners can contribute engineering, assessment and market expertise.

By the end of 2025, China had developed more than 140,000 officially recognised specialised and innovative SMEs, including approximately 17,600 “Little Giant” enterprises. The latter are a subset, not an additional group.

According to China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, these “Little Giant” enterprises reported R&D expenditure intensity of 7% in 2025. The figures demonstrate investment in specialist innovation; they do not establish European conformity for individual products.

Nexus perspective: this is a potential business base for European engineering, testing and market specialists. Commercial opportunities need to be qualified around specific products, intended uses, target markets and funded scopes. These figures are not Nexus’s client portfolio or a count of manufacturers awaiting European entry.