Industrial investment in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province amounted to 50.74 billion yuan ($7.8 billion) from January to June, up 35 percent year-on-year, the highest increase in the past eight years.

The growth rate was also 9.1 percent higher than the provincial average over the same period.

The robust growth momentum indicates the city's industrial economy boasts strong vitality.

Increasing market demand is a key factor that has enticed companies to ramp up investment to expand production capacity. One such example is Zhejiang Easun Pneumatic Science & Technology Co Ltd.

Wu Jifan, executive deputy general manager of the company, said that sales of pneumatic components as the key basic parts for face mask machines and respirators, showed explosive growth since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic last year.

In 2020, Easun's sales registered a year-on-year increase of 70 percent. In the first half of this year, it achieved an increase of about 30 percent, with the annual sales expected to reach about 400 million yuan this year.

The new factory funded by the company will be put into use soon to satisfy the soaring amount of orders. Covering a total of 85 mu (5.66 hectares), the digitized factory is expected to increase its production capacity three fold.

Strategic emerging sectors, including integrated circuits and new energy, have emerged as favored investment destinations.

Forehope Electronic (Ningbo) Co Ltd, a company specializing in high-end IC packaging and testing, is one such company.

The first phase of its new factory located in Qianwan New Area has basically finished construction in April. With a total investment of 3.5 billion yuan, the factory spans 126.8 mu (8.45 hectares) and has an annual capacity of five billion chips, worth 3 billion yuan.

In addition, numerous enterprises have also ramped up investment in facilitating digital transformation and upgrading.

One such example is Consinee Group, a Ningbo-based company focused on the production and sales of high-quality yarns and fabrics.

The company has collaborated with Siemens to build a smart plant, which is expected to help the company improve production efficiency by 20 percent and reduce labor costs by 50 percent.