The annual sales income of China's software industry will climb to 1.3 trillion yuan (162.5 billion U.S. dollars) by 2010, as against 390.1 billion yuan (18.8 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005, according to a prediction made in a development masterplan issued recently.

The industry will achieve a growth of at least 30 percent in each of the coming five years.

However, Chen Chong, president of the China Association of Software Industry, believes "the 30-percent growth was a conservative forecast," as the growth rate was as quick as 61 percent last year.

Industry observers said in the new-round international division of labor, the knowledge-intensive software industry, with high added value and low cost, is, together with information-based service sector, shifting its focus to Asia and Pacific region. The trend is providing a wonderful opportunity for China and India.

Last year, China's software products accounted for 3.55 percent of the global software sales, and its proportion was higher than that of India and of the Republic of Korea.

The industry observers say that China's software industry should cultivate more professionals, improve patterns of production and expand enterprises.

It is predicted that in the coming five years, the sector will have a workforce of approximately 2.5 million, up from current 900,000 people.

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