The European Patent Office received approximately 166,000 patent applications in 2017, up 3.9% from the previous year. Applicants from China filed 8,330, an increase of 16.6%.
China overtook Switzerland to become the fifth-largest country of origin for EPO applications for the first time, behind the United States, Germany, Japan and France.
China’s domestic and overseas patent applications totaled approximately 3.7 million in 2017, and approximately 1.84 million patents were granted.
Innovative activity at companies such as Huawei was supported by policies encouraging start-ups, innovation and emerging business models, including the sharing and digital economies.
China spent RMB 1.76 trillion (approximately USD 278.05 billion) on research and development in 2017, 70.9% more than in 2012. Alongside higher spending, policies sought to develop domestic talent and attract specialists from abroad. Beijing, for example, introduced favorable entry and exit policies for overseas talent working in Zhongguancun, its technology hub.
Original source: https://www.eureporter.co/frontpage/2018/03/15/china-patent-application-reaches-new-high-in-2017/
EPO statistics: https://www.epo.org/en/news-events/press-centre/press-release/2018/452026