BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – In the first half of 2026, China’s digital industry recorded a total revenue of 20.71 trillion yuan, marking a 13.6% increase compared to the previous year. Profits reached 1.79 trillion yuan, up by 19.3%. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology reported that the sector’s revenue growth accelerated by 4.1 percentage points from the same period last year, with profit margins rising to 8.6%, a 0.7 percentage point increase.
The majority of this revenue was generated by China’s leading digital hubs. The top 10 provincial-level markets collectively contributed 17.21 trillion yuan, a 13.2% rise. These areas accounted for 83.1% of the national digital industry revenue and drove 87% of the total revenue growth. Among these were Guangdong, Jiangsu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Zhejiang. Central China achieved 2.86 trillion yuan in digital industry revenue, reflecting a 28.3% year-on-year growth.
Digital infrastructure expanded significantly during this period. By June’s end, China had established 5.102 million 5G base stations and deployed 32.86 million 10G PON ports capable of supporting gigabit network services. The number of 5G RedCap stations reached 2.247 million, while intelligent computing capacity grew to 2,185 EFLOPS with FP16 measurement, an increase of 177% from the previous year. Overall utilization of computing resources stood at 71.4%.
Expansion of Digital Infrastructure Throughout China
China had established 52 intelligent computing facilities with over 10,000 accelerator cards by the end of June. More than 80,000 private 5G industry networks operated nationwide. Applications leveraging 5G and gigabit optical networks covered 94 key sectors of China’s economy. Additionally, the country hosted over 26,000 active 5G and industrial internet projects. Authorities also reported the creation of 1,260 classified 5G factories across the country.
Digital manufacturing experienced accelerated growth in production and revenue during the first half. Electronics industry value-added output increased by 14.8% year-on-year. Major electronics firms reported combined revenue of 12.15 trillion yuan, up 17.8%, with profits soaring 66% to 703.6 billion yuan. Notably, sectors such as integrated circuits, computer manufacturing, and specialized electronic materials significantly contributed to the profit increase. Electronics output growth outpaced the overall industrial growth by 9.4 percentage points.
Software and IT Services Continue on Growth Path
In the first half of 2026, China’s digital services sector maintained robust expansion. Total telecommunications business volume increased by 8.3% at constant prices from the previous year. Revenue from software and IT services grew by 9.5%, with software products rising 6.9% and IT services up 10.4%. Leading internet firms reported a 10.1% revenue increase and a 16.6% rise in total profit compared to the same period of 2025.
These figures reflect the continued outperformance of technology-related services amid broader economic growth. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s economy expanded by 4.7% in the first half of 2026. During this time, information transmission, software, and information technology services experienced a 10.7% increase in value added. The country’s digital industry encompasses electronic information manufacturing, telecommunications, software and IT services, and internet-related services, which are integral to the broader digital economy.