China’s cultural and related industries achieved steady growth in the first half of 2026, driven by emerging business models and new forms of cultural activities, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday.
A survey covering 82,000 major cultural enterprises nationwide showed that companies with annual main business revenue of 20 million yuan or more generated total revenue of 7.2026 trillion yuan (about US$1.061 trillion) from January to June, representing a 4.6 percent year-on-year increase.
Among them, 16 sub-sectors featuring new and distinctive cultural business models, including digital publishing and internet-based cultural entertainment platforms, recorded revenue of 3.5239 trillion yuan, up 9.6 percent from the same period last year.
Sector-wise, revenue from cultural product manufacturing declined slightly by 0.4 percent to 1.7851 trillion yuan, while wholesale and retail sales in the cultural sector fell by 0.1 percent to 1.094 trillion yuan.
The cultural services sector, however, provided strong support for overall growth. During the first half of the year, cultural service enterprises generated 4.3235 trillion yuan in operating revenue, an increase of 8.1 percent year on year.
Revenue from cultural service providers accounted for 60 percent of the total income generated by major cultural enterprises, rising 1.9 percentage points compared with the same period last year. Among these, sub-sectors such as cultural investment and asset management, as well as cultural event organization services, recorded double-digit revenue growth.
Source: CCTV