BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – The China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology reported that China’s digital sector generated a total revenue of 20.71 trillion yuan during the first six months of 2026, reflecting a 13.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Profitability also improved, reaching 1.79 trillion yuan, an ascent of 19.3%. The sector’s revenue growth rate gained 4.1 percentage points from the previous year, with its profit margin rising by 0.7 percentage point to 8.6%.
Most of the nation’s digital output was concentrated in its leading industry hubs. The top ten provincial-level markets amassed a combined revenue of 17.21 trillion yuan, marking a 13.2% increase. These regions accounted for 83.1% of China’s total digital industry revenue and contributed 87% to the overall revenue growth. Notable markets included Guangdong, Jiangsu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Zhejiang. Central China’s digital industry revenue reached 2.86 trillion yuan, up 28.3% year-on-year.
During this period, China’s digital infrastructure also expanded. By the end of June, the country had deployed 5.102 million 5G base stations. Additionally, there were 32.86 million 10G PON ports capable of supporting gigabit-speed network services. The number of 5G RedCap base stations increased to 2.247 million. Meanwhile, intelligent computing capacity, measured in FP16, rose to 2,185 EFLOPS, a 177% growth from the previous year. The overall utilization rate of computing facilities reached 71.4%.
Expansion of Digital Infrastructure Across China
China had established 52 intelligent computing centers equipped with more than 10,000 accelerator cards by the end of June. Over 80,000 private 5G industry networks were operational nationwide. Applications leveraging 5G and gigabit optical networks spanned 94 key sectors of the economy. The country also supported over 26,000 active 5G and industrial internet projects. Authorities announced that 1,260 classified 5G factories had been set up across China.
In the first half of 2026, digital manufacturing experienced faster growth in both production and earnings. The electronics industry’s value-added output increased by 14.8% year-on-year. Major electronic information manufacturers reported revenue of 12.15 trillion yuan, up 17.8%, with their combined profits soaring 66% to 703.6 billion yuan. Strong contributions to profit growth came from sectors such as integrated circuits, computer manufacturing, and specialized electronic materials. Electronics production growth outpaced overall industrial growth by 9.4 percentage points.
Software and IT Services Continue to Grow
China’s digital services sector also saw notable expansion in the first half of 2026. The total telecommunications business volume increased by 8.3% at constant prices compared to the same period last year. Revenue from software and IT services grew by 9.5%. Specifically, software product revenue rose 6.9%, while IT services revenue increased 10.4%. Leading internet companies reported a 10.1% rise in revenue and a 16.6% increase in total profit compared to the first half of 2025.
These figures reflect how technology-related services continue to outperform the broader economy, which grew by 4.7% in the same period, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The added value of information transmission, software, and IT services expanded by 10.7%. The Chinese digital industry encompasses electronic information manufacturing, telecommunications, software and IT services, and internet-related activities, all vital components of the country’s larger digital economy.