Drone makers see soaring growth but dark clouds circle industry

Updated: 2016-01-26 11:23

By Zhou Mo(China Daily)

The Ehang 184 autonomous aerial vehicle is unveiled at the Ehang booth at CES International on Jan 7, 2016 in Las Vegas. [Photo/Agencies]

Nearly 400 companies make drones for civilian purposes in China. The world over, civil drones are being sought to accomplish tasks like fast food delivery, couriers, land surveys, pesticide spraying on farms, traffic management and police surveillance, subject to regulatory approval and local laws.

A June 2015 report by big data analysis and ratings firm Analysys International shows the civil drone market in China is expected to grow 181 percent from 3.95 billion yuan ($600.4 million) this year to 11.09 billion yuan by 2018.

"The expected explosion of the civil drone market would be mainly due to demand for consumer-level drones," said Jean Xiao, a research manager at market intelligence firm IDC.