China's data industry to maintain 20% annual growth over coming years: official

China's data industry is expected to maintain annual growth rate of more than 20 percent over coming years, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Tuesday, citing an official from the National Data Administration (NDA).

The development of China's data industry has yielded promising initial results, with the country's total data production in 2023 reaching 32.85 zettabytes, a year-on-year increase of 22.44 percent, the official said at a sideline event at the China International Big Data Industry Expo 2024.

The country's data industry is growing rapidly, and preliminary calculations have indicated that China's data industry will maintain an average annual growth rate of over 20 percent over coming years, according to the official.

The China International Big Data Industry Expo is set to be held in Guiyang, the capital of Southwest China's Guizhou Province, from Wednesday to Friday.

The recently concluded third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee emphasized efforts to foster an integrated national market for technology and data, as well as to build and operationalize national data infrastructure to promote data sharing.

China has formed a relatively complete data industry chain, covering the entire life cycle of acquisition, storage, calculation, management and use, the official said, noting that the administration will work on a four-prong approach to nurture the development of the data industry, and improve the quality of the digital economy.

The administration will also roll out two guidelines governing the use of public data and corporate data resources within year and is working on a policy governing the use of personal data resources, according to CCTV's report. 

Localities will be supported in growing their data industries that suit the local development condition and form up synergies among each other.

China's ecosystem centered around data is rapidly expanding and contributing to global digitalization, experts said.

According to the latest survey results, China's data industry has over 190,000 companies, in the field of data application, data resources, data technology and data services.

Chen Xuannian, a manager with Chinasie, an information technology firm based in South China's Guangdong Province, said his company is actively expanding overseas by providing digital services to nearly 200 Chinese companies going abroad.

Chinasie has expanded its footprints to the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Africa. Chen, attending the expo, told the Global Times that industrial software is the cornerstone of high-quality industrialization and the company's homegrown solution helps more Chinese companies to be more self-reliant in core technologies.

Last October, China inaugurated the National Data Administration to advance the planning and building of a Digital China, the digital economy and a digital society.