Workers of China Telecom install a 5G base station in Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, on Sept 25, 2021. (TONG CHANGHUAI / FOR CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - China's telecommunication industry logged a steady expansion in the first four months of this year, buoyed by emerging businesses, official data shows.

The combined business revenues of firms in the sector totaled 569.9 billion yuan (about $80.5 billion), up 7.2 percent year-on-year, according to data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The country had over 2.73 million 5G base stations by the end of April, and secured a net increase of 73.08 million 5G cellphone users in the first four months

Of the total, emerging sectors, such as Internet data centers, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things, saw their revenues rise 22.3 percent year-on-year, driving the revenue of the telecom business up by 4.3 percentage points, the ministry said.

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The data also reveals the spread of 5G services. The country had over 2.73 million 5G base stations by the end of April, and secured a net increase of 73.08 million 5G cellphone users in the first four months.