BEIJING -- China's national economic development zones serve as powerful engines for regional growth, driving industrial advancement across both prosperous and less-developed regions, according to a guest speaker on the latest episode of the China Economic Roundtable, the all-media talk show hosted by Xinhua News Agency.

The zones play a leading role in their respective provinces or regions. Specializing in core industries, the zones extend developed areas' economic influence and accelerate development in less-developed regions, said Ji Xiaofeng, an official from the Ministry of Commerce's Department of Foreign Investment Administration.

Ji noted that the zones function not only as platforms for global openness but also as hubs for orderly cross-regional industrial transfers. While strengthening clustered development of competitive and leading industries, the ministry fully leverages the zones' radiating effects on their host regions, she added.

For example, the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area has proactively expanded its production and supply chains to neighboring areas, enabling local businesses to benefit from its flagship enterprises and achieve mutual growth.

The ministry also prioritizes deepening ties between regional industry leaders through the interaction between eastern and western development zones, Ji said.

China established its first national-level economic development zone in the northeastern city of Dalian in 1984. By 2024, the number of such zones reached 232, generating a regional GDP of 16.9 trillion yuan (about $2.36 trillion).