Tax data show China's digital-real economy integration maintains robust growth

An automatic assembly line is pictured at a smart factory of Changan Auto in Chongqing, southwest China, Jan. 9, 2025. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)

BEIJING, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- China's integration of the digital and real economies has maintained a fast growth trend so far this year, with stronger digital industrialization, increased investment in industrial digitization and a growing role of data, official data showed Thursday.

Value-added tax (VAT) invoice data from the State Taxation Administration showed that the sales revenue of core industries in the digital economy rose 10 percent year on year in the first 11 months, notably faster than the overall growth rate of enterprises nationwide.

Within the sector, sales revenue of smart equipment manufacturing and electronic components and equipment manufacturing increased 28.2 percent and 10.9 percent, respectively.

Enterprises stepped up investment in industrial digitization. From January to November, manufacturing enterprises' spending on purchases of digital technologies rose 11.2 percent year on year, the data showed.

The growth was particularly notable in equipment manufacturing. Spending on digital technology purchases by automobile manufacturing, general equipment manufacturing, as well as computer, communication and other electronic equipment manufacturing rose 25.5 percent, 19.7 percent and 13.3 percent, respectively.

Sales revenue of data-driven industries rose 6.3 percent year on year in the first 11 months, the data showed.

During the same period, sales revenue for internet platforms that cover new business forms such as online freight, food delivery and ride-hailing services increased by 16.2 percent year on year.

Sales revenue of internet retail services, including live-streaming e-commerce, saw an 11.9 percent rise, while that of supply chain management services recorded a robust growth of 24.7 percent, according to the data.