Researchers analyze experimental data at the control room of the low-energy high-intensity heavy-ion accelerator facility (LEAF) on Dec. 10, 2024. (Photo: Xinhua)

China's first centrally administered state-owned enterprise (SOE) specializing in data technology was officially established in Shanghai on Thursday. The company, tentatively translated as China Digital Logistics Information Co, is directly supervised by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The company will focus on the sharing, development and utilization of data resources across sectors such as road, rail, waterway, aviation and ports. By integrating logistics, information and financial flows, it aims to build a national-level logistics big data platform, improve efficiency through digital technologies, support the development of the real economy and reduce logistics costs across society.

It is a central SOE with a diversified ownership structure and a registered capital of 10 billion yuan. It has brought in strategic investors, including China Merchants Group, China Poly Group, China Logistics Group and Shanghai Data Group, as Xinhua reported.

This company will play a key role in serving as a leader and model, encouraging business investment in data technology, and driving the rapid development of the entire industry, Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Thursday.

It is also expected to make a positive impact in resource integration and technological innovation, Wang said.

The data industry, an emerging sector, has been highlighted in government documents in recent years. At the beginning of this year, the National Data Bureau (NDB) and 17 other departments issued a document outlining the goal of creating a relatively complete data industry ecosystem by the end of 2026.

There are more than 190,000 data companies active across China, with the country's data industry expected to maintain an annual growth rate of over 20 percent, according to a report by China Media Group in August.

In 2023, China's digital economy reached 53.9 trillion yuan, an increase of 3.7 trillion yuan from the previous year. The growth of the digital economy contributed 66.45 percent to the overall GDP growth, the report said.

In terms of resource allocation, data has effectively boosted innovative allocation of other production factors, Liu Liehong, head of the NDB, said at the 2024 China International Big Data Industry Expo in August.

In terms of application outcomes, data is being increasingly integrated with business operations, significantly empowering industrial transformation and upgrading, Liu said, noting that cultivating the data industry is a crucial approach to advancing the market-based allocation of data elements and inevitable choice for developing new quality productive forces and driving high-quality development.

As an emerging strategic industry, data technology will offer new momentum for China's high-quality economic development. By driving digital transformation and industrial upgrades, the industry is expected to lift the growth of related supply chains and foster overall economic growth, Wang noted.