China's smartphone sales hit 200m

Consumption of information products and services in China surged 20 percent in the first half of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013, according to a Chinese official.

Information consumption topped 1.35 trillion yuan ($218 billion) in the January-June period, up 20 percent from a year earlier, Zhang Feng, chief engineer at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, told a press conference on Thursday.

Nearly 200 million smartphones were shipped in the first six months, accounting for 87 percent of total mobile phone output, Zhang said. During the period, e-commerce transactions expanded 26.7 percent year-on-year, while online sales grew by one-third.