BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – During the initial six months of 2026, China’s digital sector generated a total revenue of 20.71 trillion yuan, reflecting a 13.6% increase compared to the same period in the previous year. The industry’s total profit rose by 19.3% to reach 1.79 trillion yuan. According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the profit margin for the industry stood at 8.6%, which is 0.7 percentage points higher than a year earlier. These figures encompass key components of China’s rapidly expanding digital economy.
Leading digital markets across China’s regions maintained their dominance throughout the first half. The top 10 provincial-level markets collectively produced 17.21 trillion yuan in revenue, marking a 13.2% rise from the previous year. These markets accounted for 83.1% of the total digital industry revenue nationwide and contributed to 87% of the overall sector’s revenue growth. Major centers such as Guangdong, Jiangsu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Zhejiang remained among the country’s primary digital industry hubs.
Faster growth was observed in Central China, where revenue reached 2.86 trillion yuan, an increase of 28.3% from the same period last year. Infrastructure development continued in the digital communications and computing sectors. By the end of June, China had deployed 5.102 million 5G base stations. It also supported 32.86 million 10G PON ports that enable gigabit network services. Additionally, the number of 5G RedCap base stations had grown to 2.247 million.
Expansion of Computing Power and 5G Infrastructure
China’s intelligent computing capacity reached 2,185 EFLOPS based on FP16 measurements during this period, representing a 177% increase from a year earlier. The utilization rate across computing facilities was 71.4%. The country also established 52 intelligent computing centers with over 10,000 accelerator cards deployed. Nationwide, more than 80,000 private 5G industry networks were operational, with over 26,000 active projects combining 5G and industrial internet technologies across China.
In the manufacturing sphere, digital production achieved notable gains in output, revenue, and profits. The electronics industry’s value-added output increased by 14.8% year-over-year. Major electronic information manufacturers reported revenue of 12.15 trillion yuan, up 17.8%, with their combined profit soaring by 66% to 703.6 billion yuan. Growth was driven by sectors such as integrated circuits, computer manufacturing, and specialized electronic materials. Electronics production growth surpassed the overall industrial growth rate by 9.4 percentage points during the same period.
Growth Continues in Software and Digital Services
The software and information technology services industry in China kept pace with digital manufacturing, with sector revenue rising by 9.5% in the first half of 2026. Revenue from software products increased by 6.9%, and income from IT services grew by 10.4%. Leading internet firms experienced a 10.1% rise in revenue, while their overall profit expanded by 16.6% compared to the same period last year. The telecommunications sector also saw an 8.3% growth in business volume at constant prices.
During the first six months of 2026, China’s digital industry expanded at a pace faster than the nation’s broader economy, which grew by 4.7%, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The sectors of information transmission, software, and IT services recorded a 10.7% growth in added value. The digital industry comprises electronic information manufacturing, telecommunications, software, IT services, and internet-related enterprises, all of which contributed to billions of yuan in revenue during this period across China.