(Yicai Global) July 1 -- China ranks second globally for computing power following a five-year period of rapid growth, and the country’s big data sector is likely to be worth more than CNY3 trillion (USD447.3 billion) by 2025, according to a government vice minister.

China’s computing power surpassed 140 exaflops at the end of last year, after logging average annual growth of over 30 percent in the past five years, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s Zhang Yunming told reporters on June 29. The country also has 19 million data center servers in use able to store 800 exabytes, he added.

The big data sector is expected to maintain an average annual compound growth rate of about 25 percent during the government’s 14th five-year plan, which runs through 2025, increasing to CNY3 trillion from CNY1.3 trillion, according to a plan the MIIT published earlier.

In February, China launched a project to channel more computing resources to the less developed western regions from eastern areas to make full use of West China’s energy resources to build data centers and effectively transfer and share East China’s demand for computing power.

According to the National Development and Reform Commission, 25 new projects with an investment of more than CNY190 billion (USD28.3 billion) started this year. Once completed, their computing power will reach 13.5 exaflops, equal to the computing power of 27 million personal computers.

During the 14th five-year plan period, investment in big data centers is expected to grow at an annual clip of more than 20 percent and exceed CNY3 trillion, as proposed by the NDRC.

Computing power is important to support development of the digital economy, and it is the base for industrial development and the application of artificial intelligence, Wu Qi, executive director at Wuxi Digital Economy Research Institute, told Yicai Global.

In the future, high-frequency trading in financial markets, virtual and augmented reality, ultra-high-definition videos, the internet of vehicles, drones, and smart factories, will develop rapidly because of abundant computing power, Wu added.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Futura Costaglione