Country stepping up efforts for data reforms

China is accelerating steps to promote reforms related to the market-oriented allocation of data elements and put data assets into the balance sheets of enterprises, as data has become a new type of production factor and plays an increasingly vital role in bolstering industrial revolution, according to the country's top data governance regulator.

More efforts are needed to speed up the establishment of basic systems for data, facilitate the circulation, transaction and utilization of data, and boost the construction of digital infrastructure, in order to fully unleash the value of massive data resources, said Liu Liehong, head of the National Data Administration.

Liu made the remarks on Wednesday during the World Economic Forum's 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, in Dalian, Liaoning province.

Liu said that China is stepping up efforts to put data resources into better use as well as establish a data property rights system, a circulation and trading system and a revenue distribution system.

The purpose of allowing companies to include data resources as "intangible assets" in their financial statements is to further encourage them to develop and make use of data, promote the circulation and trading of data resources, and empower social and economic development, Liu noted.

He also called for efforts to ensure data security and protect personal privacy and commercial secrets by leveraging cutting-edge digital technologies such as blockchain.

China's total data output reached 32.85 zettabytes in 2023, an increase of 22.4 percent year-on-year, while the added value of core digital economy industries accounted for 10 percent of GDP, according to the National Data Administration.

The top regulator has unveiled a guideline to expand the application scenarios of data elements in 12 key fields such as industrial manufacturing, modern agriculture, trade circulation, transportation and financial services.

Lee Xiaodong, founder and CEO of Fuxi Institution, a domestic consultancy focusing on the internet and the digital economy, said at the forum that the utilization of data elements in the country is still in its initial stages and the immense value of data is yet to be fully tapped.

China has unveiled a set of accounting rules for corporate data resources. According to the Ministry of Finance, corporate data can be classified as "intangible assets" when it meets relevant requirements in accounting standards, while data held for sale in daily business activities can be recognized as inventory.

Ouyang Rihui, assistant dean of the China Center for Internet Economy Research at Central University of Finance and Economics, said, "With the rapid development of the data elements market, an increasing number of enterprises have attached great importance to the accumulation, development and application of data assets, and begun to incorporate data into their balance sheets to better reflect the real value and asset status of enterprises."

Data elements have the attributes of commodities, which could be effectively allocated through market evaluation and trading, in order to create huge economic and social value, Ouyang said.

More efforts should be made to promote the confirmation of data-related rights as well as explore a data pricing mechanism and value assessment system, in order to give full play to the value of data and boost the development of the country's digital economy, he added.

Statistics from the National Industrial Information Security Development Research Center show that revenue derived from China's data elements market is projected to rise to 198.9 billion yuan ($27.4 billion) in 2025, with the compound annual growth rate surpassing 25 percent during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period.