China’s mobile traffic up 40 per cent in March as information consumption surges amid coronavirus pandemic

China’s information consumption level received a huge boost last month as millions of residents, confined to their homes during the coronavirus pandemic, turned to digital methods to work and satisfy their everyday needs.

The country’s mobile data traffic volume jumped 39.3 per cent from the same period a year ago, Li Ying, a senior official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said in a press conference on Saturday.

For the month of March, the average household usage of mobile traffic reached 9.5 GB, the highest level in almost a year, reflecting rapid growth of information consumption, Li added.

“During the epidemic period, consumer demand for online medical and education services, food delivery and new retail services posted explosive growth,” said Li. “Consumers have experienced the convenience of information consumption, and it plays a very important role in hedging the economic impact [of Covid-19] and promoting a stable economy.”

The pandemic greatly boosted online activities last month as people looked for ways to alleviate boredom as they remained stuck at home.

Monthly active users of telecommuting and online education services were up 29 per cent and 30.1 per cent respectively in March from a year ago, according to a Trustdata report released on Monday.