The GSMA began seeding the ground for its next MWC event in Shanghai by revealing research indicating mobile technologies and digital transformation would contribute $2 trillion to China’s economy by 2030.
In its Mobile Economy China 2025 report, the GSMA predicts 5G technology and its related marketplace would account for 40 per cent of the expected total GDP contribution.
Senior staff including Sihan Bo Chen, head of Greater China, CMO Lara Dewar, director general Vivek Badrinath and GSMA Ltd CEO John Hoffman (pictured, left to right, respectively) presented the forecasts during a media briefing to promote MWC Shanghai 2025, which is scheduled to run in the city from 18 June to 20 June.
The GSMA noted 5G, AI and IoT are “set to be the dominant topics” during the event.
Badrinath said China remains a frontrunner in highlighting “how advanced 5G services, mobile innovation, AI and digital services can have a real economic impact”.
The director general noted 5G “already accounts for more than half of mobile connections in China and is the cornerstone for the mobile industry’s trillion-dollar contribution” to the nation’s economy.
In its report, the GSMA notes mobile technologies and services generated $1.2 trillion of economic value for China in 2024 and operators in the nation continue to be at the cutting edge of 5G deployments.
The association predicts mobile internet penetration will rise from 80 per cent in 2024 to 84 per cent in 2030 and data traffic will quadruple to almost 70GB per connection per month.