BEIJING, CHINA / RankWire.AI / – During the initial six months of 2026, China’s digital industry generated a total revenue of 20.71 trillion yuan, reflecting a 13.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Profit margins also improved, with total profits rising by 19.3% to 1.79 trillion yuan. According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the industry’s profit margin stood at 8.6%, 0.7 percentage points higher than in the previous year. These figures represent key segments of China’s rapidly expanding digital economy.
The country’s leading regional digital markets maintained dominance throughout the period. The top 10 provincial-level markets collectively contributed 17.21 trillion yuan in revenue, a 13.2% rise from the prior year, accounting for 83.1% of the national digital industry total. They also drove 87% of the sector’s overall revenue growth. Guangdong, Jiangsu, Beijing, Shanghai, and Zhejiang continued to be among China’s most significant digital hubs.
Central China outpaced the national average in digital growth, with regional revenue reaching 2.86 trillion yuan, up 28.3% year-over-year. Infrastructure development persisted, with 5.102 million 5G base stations installed by June’s end. The country also had 32.86 million 10G PON ports supporting gigabit services, while 2.247 million 5G RedCap base stations were operational nationwide.
Expansion in Computing and 5G Infrastructure
China’s intelligent computing capacity reached 2,185 EFLOPS using FP16 measurement, marking a 177% increase from the previous year. Overall utilization of computing resources stood at 71.4%. The country developed 52 intelligent computing facilities with over 10,000 accelerator cards each. More than 80,000 private 5G networks are now operational across China, and over 26,000 active projects combining 5G with industrial internet technologies have been identified.
In manufacturing, electronics production saw notable gains, with value-added output rising 14.8% year-over-year. Major electronic information manufacturers reported revenues of 12.15 trillion yuan, a 17.8% increase, while profits surged 66% to 703.6 billion yuan. Growth was driven by segments such as integrated circuits, computer manufacturing, and specialized electronic materials, with electronics growth surpassing the overall industrial rate by 9.4 percentage points during the period.
Software and Internet Services Continue Their Upward Trajectory
The software and IT services sector in China maintained steady growth alongside digital manufacturing. Revenue from these services increased by 9.5%, with software products gaining 6.9% and IT services rising 10.4%. Major internet firms reported a 10.1% rise in revenue, while profits grew 16.6% compared to the first half of 2025. Telecommunications activity also expanded, with an 8.3% growth in business volume at constant prices.
During the first half of 2026, the digital industry outpaced China’s broader economy, which grew by 4.7% as per the National Bureau of Statistics. The sectors of information transmission, software, and IT services experienced a 10.7% increase in added value. The digital economy encompasses electronic information manufacturing, telecommunications, software, IT services, and internet-related industries, all generating trillions of yuan in revenue during this period across the country.