BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – In the first half of 2026, China’s digital sector achieved a revenue of 20.71 trillion yuan, marking a 13.6% increase compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, total profits grew by 19.3% to reach 1.79 trillion yuan. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology noted that the industry’s revenue growth rate accelerated by 4.1 percentage points from the same period last year, with profit margins rising to 8.6%, an increase of 0.7 percentage point.
Major digital industry hubs in China contributed significantly to the national total, with the top 10 provincial markets generating a combined 17.21 trillion yuan—up 13.2%. These regions accounted for 83.1% of the country’s digital revenue and drove 87% of overall growth. Leading markets included Guangdong, Jiangsu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Zhejiang, while Central China saw digital industry revenue of 2.86 trillion yuan, a 28.3% rise from the previous year.
Digital infrastructure also saw notable expansion during this period. As of June, China had 5.102 million 5G base stations, along with 32.86 million 10G PON ports capable of supporting gigabit services. The number of 5G RedCap base stations reached 2.247 million, and computing capacity increased to 2,185 EFLOPS measured in FP16, reflecting a 177% year-on-year growth. The overall utilization rate of computing facilities was 71.4%.
China’s Digital Infrastructure Growth
China by the end of June had established 52 intelligent computing centers, each deploying over 10,000 accelerator cards. The country also operated more than 80,000 private 5G industry networks. Applications utilizing 5G and gigabit optical networks spanned 94 major sectors of the national economy. Additionally, China maintained more than 26,000 active 5G and industrial internet projects, with authorities reporting 1,260 classified 5G factories nationwide.
In the first half, digital manufacturing experienced faster growth in both production and earnings. The electronics industry’s value-added output increased by 14.8% year-on-year, with revenue at leading electronic information companies reaching 12.15 trillion yuan—up 17.8%. Their combined profit surged by 66% to 703.6 billion yuan, driven by strong contributions from integrated circuits, computer manufacturing, and specialized electronic materials. Electronics output growth surpassed the overall industrial growth rate by 9.4 percentage points.
Software and IT Services Continue Upward Trend
The first six months of 2026 also saw steady expansion in China’s digital services sector. The total telecommunications volume increased by 8.3% at constant prices from the previous year. Revenue from software and information technology services grew by 9.5%, with software product revenue rising 6.9% and IT services revenue increasing 10.4%. Major internet firms reported a 10.1% revenue increase and a 16.6% rise in overall profits compared to the same period in 2025.
These digital industry figures coincide with continued acceleration in technology-driven services, which outpaced broader economic growth. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s economy expanded by 4.7% during the first half of 2026. The value-added of information transmission, software, and IT services grew by 10.7%. The country’s digital economy encompasses electronic information manufacturing, telecommunications, software and IT services, and internet-related services, forming an integral part of China’s broader economic landscape.