Nearly 1.1 billion have access to internet in China

China has had nearly 1.1 billion netizens as of June, an increase of 7.42 million compared with December 2023, a report released by the China Internet Network Information Center said on Thursday.

Mobile payment services have been continuously optimized, providing greater convenience for foreigners coming to or staying in China, according to the report.

From January to June, over 5 million inbound travelers used mobile payment services, a fourfold increase year-on-year, it said.

The travelers brought more than 90 million transactions totaling 14 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) in the first half of this year, both of which increased seven fold year-on-year, it added.

It also showed that among the 7.42 million new internet users, the majority were teenagers aged 10 to 19 and elderly people. Specifically, the youth accounted for 49 percent of the new netizens, while those aged 50 to 59, and 60 above represented 15.2 percent and 20.8 percent, respectively.

More than 37 percent of the new internet users chose to use short video apps when they first went online, followed by instant messaging services, it said, adding that over 95 percent of the total netizens are short-video users.