Relying on its ample marine resources, the eastern coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong province has been ramping up efforts to foster a competitive marine economy in recent years.

Despite multiple COVID-19 cases and their impact on the macro economy this year, Qingdao's marine economy is still growing, demonstrating the resilience and vitality of local blue economic development.

According to official preliminary calculations, Qingdao's gross ocean product reached 345 billion yuan ($48.23 billion) in the first three quarters of this year, up 10.2 percent year-on-year.

The marine economy is a prominent advantage of Qingdao. Over the past 10 years, the city's marine economy has grown at an average annual rate of 15.6 percent.

In 2021, the city's gross ocean product was 468.48 billion yuan, ranking third in China, with a year-on-year growth of 17.1 percent.

Qingdao boasts a veritable source of marine innovation, as the city is home to 30 percent of the country's ocean-related academicians, 40 percent of ocean-related high-end R&D platforms and 50 percent of internationally leading technologies in the marine field.

Qingdao will strive to become a hub for international marine science and technology innovation, international shipping, marine industry, marine ecology and vigorously enhance its core competitiveness, said local officials.

By 2025, the city is expected to achieve an average annual growth of over 7 percent in the gross ocean product and over 8 percent in the added value of strategic emerging marine industries.

The world's first 100,000-metric-ton intelligent vessel Conson No 1 is put into operation in Qingdao in May. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A salmon is harvested in China's first deep-sea fish farm in Qingdao, Shandong province. [Photos by Yu Fangping/For chinadaily.com.cn]