IDC: The size of the Chinese ICT market is expected to exceed $751.7 billion in 2028, with a five-year compound annual growth rate of 6.5%.

Recently, the International Data Corporation (IDC) released the V1 version of the IDC Global ICT Spending Guide for 2025: Industry and Enterprise Scale. IDC data shows that the total investment in the global ICT market is expected to reach nearly $5.3 trillion in 2024 and is projected to increase to $6.9 trillion by 2028, with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7%. Insights into China's ICT market spending IDC predicts that the size of China's ICT market will reach nearly $751.76 billion by 2028, with a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.5%. Consumer end is expected to see a recovery driven by policy incentives and the promotion of emerging technology products, leading to growth in demand for intelligent terminals. From an enterprise perspective, the size of China's enterprise ICT market was approximately $269.36 billion in 2024, with an 11.7% growth compared to 2023, consistently higher than the GDP growth rate. The enterprise ICT market in China is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11.5% starting from 2024, reaching nearly $415 billion by 2028. Going global, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and computing power deployment are becoming core engines for market growth. The demand for computing power driven by generative artificial intelligence is a key factor in driving the growth of the ICT market. Enterprises continue to increase their investment in data storage and computing infrastructure to meet the rising demand for computing, facilitating the innovation and deployment of generative AI technology. This trend is accelerating the overall expansion of the ICT market. The demand for intelligent computing services is further increasing, with the government encouraging the construction of eight major computing hubs and ten major centers, gradually upgrading AI-driven computing centers to intelligent computing centers. IDC predicts that the five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of enterprise server and storage investments in China from 2023 to 2028 will reach 24.3%. The deployment of cloud computing models in the enterprise IT market will continue to increase, with existing customers expanding continuously and all Internet customers moving to the cloud. The growth of the IaaS market is constrained by factors such as business growth and price competition, and is expected to slow down. IDC data shows that China's IaaS spending is projected to grow at a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.3%. Leading cloud companies in China, cloud specialists, and managed service providers continue to expand overseas, with market revenues in industries such as video, e-commerce, and gaming seeing growth. Southeast Asia and the Middle East and Africa are currently hotspots for international expansion. Industry Insights The financial industry remains a key area of ICT spending. As artificial intelligence and digital transformation advance, financial institutions continue to increase their investment in emerging technologies to improve operational efficiency, optimize risk management systems, enrich customer experiences, and enhance market competitiveness. Additionally, the software and information services industry is also a key area for ICT investment. As cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and big data technologies continue to develop, the demand for software and information services from enterprises is growing continuously. IDC predicts that from 2024, the five-year compound annual growth rate for this industry will reach 20.3%, with overall investments approaching $89 billion by 2028. Enterprise Scale Insights In 2024, Very Large Businesses (1000+) continue to be the main force driving ICT spending, accounting for over 20% of the investment share. Meanwhile, IT spending by small and medium-sized enterprises is steadily increasing. With the popularization of intelligent manufacturing technologies, the focus of small and medium-sized enterprises on automation and digital solutions is rising, improving efficiency and market competitiveness through the introduction of intelligent production systems and optimized production processes. IDC Global ICT Spending Guide: Industry and Enterprise Scale The IDC Global ICT Spending Guide: Industry and Enterprise Scale quantifies the market potential of ICT technologies from a global perspective. Forecast data covers nine regions globally, 120 technologies, 28 industries, five enterprise scales, and multiple dimensions. IDC aims to provide users with forecasts of global market trends over the next five years through the spending guide. In the future, the IDC Global ICT Spending Guide: Industry and Enterprise Scale will be continuously updated based on market dynamics, covering more technology sub-markets and providing market insights and research from a more comprehensive perspective. IDC Spending Guide The IDC Spending Guide series is dedicated to providing data support for IT vendors, industry users, and investment/financial institutions in strategic planning, product development, IT spending, and investment planning. The series focuses on popular IT areas, predicting market size and growth from multiple perspectives to help vendors explore market potential; guiding industry users in IT planning according to hot technologies and application scenarios; and helping investment and financial institutions make better decisions by analyzing the development prospects of specific markets.