China's internet sector logs steady revenue growth in Jan-Aug

BEIJING -- China's internet sector saw solid growth in business revenue in the first eight months of 2025, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.

From January to August, China's major internet companies and related services companies generated about 1.29 trillion yuan (roughly $181.46 billion) in business revenue -- up 2.2 percent year-on-year and featuring a growth rate 0.8 percentage points faster than in the first quarter of 2025.

Cumulative profits of major internet companies reached 106.3 billion yuan during this period, down 3.8 percent year-on-year -- with the decline narrowing by 4.5 percentage points from the first half of the year.

Spending on research and development totaled 66.86 billion yuan in the first eight months of 2025 -- an increase of 3.4 percent year-on-year.

Major internet companies and related services companies refer to those with annual internet and related services revenue of at least 20 million yuan.