China becomes 1st nation with more than 4M domestic invention patents

​​​​​​​By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - China surpassed the 4 million mark when it authorized the first worldwide 921,000 valid domestic invention patents last year, state media reported Tuesday.

The National Intellectual Property Administration said China owned about 4.02 million domestic valid invention patents by the end of in 2023.

Last year, it progressed 22.4% against 2022, said Hu Wenhui, deputy head of the administration.

“High-value patents accounted for over 40% of the total, which shows that China has been a veritable IP power and has consistently contributed to global innovation,” he said.

Hu added that the number of “valid invention patents” in China had exceeded 4.99 million by the end of 2023, while the number of valid trademarks in the country reached 46.15 million.

“China also approved a total of 2,508 geographical indications (GI) products by the end of 2023, with the annual output value of GI products exceeding 800 billion yuan (about $112.246 billion),” said the administration.