The digital economy is becoming an important factor driving increased momentum of China's economic growth, said the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Wednesday.

According to NBS, China's new growth drivers index has grown 28.7 percent since last year, increasing from 210.1 to 270.3, more than double the 2015 figure.

Thanks to the country's "Internet +" strategy that expanded internet coverage in both rural and urban areas, the internet economic index of China in 2018 is estimated to stand at 605.4, surging 67.2 percent compared with last year.

The internet economic index contributed 80.8 percent to China's new growth drivers, the highest of all indicators.

With the rapid development of internet devices, especially mobile terminals such as smartphones, new business models in the retail sector are emerging. The deeply integrated development of online and offline retail, as well as expanding and optimized online consumption have facilitated the formation of new consumption drivers. 

In 2018, transactions made on Chinese e-commerce platforms hit 31.6 trillion yuan, up 8.5 percent from 2017, and the total volume of online retailing in the country stood at 9 trillion yuan, growing 23.9 percent from the previous year.