China’s geospatial information science industry is estimated to enjoy continuous growth of more than 20 percent year-on-year to bring in more than 620 billion yuan profit this year, according to the China GIS industry annual report released in Haikou on Thursday at an annual congress for the industry.

China has more than 950,000 companies and entities in the sector; 37 of them are listed companies. The industry employs 1.17 million people.

The GIS industry has played a positive role in helping stabilize the country’s economic growth, promoting reform and industry restructuring, the report said.

“The industry is developing very fast in China, and more overseas mergers and acquisitions have been recorded since 2017,” said Xu Yanying, executive vice-president of China Association for GIS,   at the opening ceremony of the two-day annual conference, which attracted 2,000 participants from around the country.

A subsidiary company of BDStar Navigation Co Ltd, the first listed company in China's satellite navigation industry, bought 50 percent of Germany’s In-tech GmbH’s shares last year. It has also acquired Canada-based RX Networks Inc.

The industry’s total global revenue is expected to top $339 billion, with an increase of 13.3 percent, of which the China market will account for as high as 27 percent this year.

The profit is likely to reach $439 billion worldwide by 2020, with the Asia-Pacific area expected to replace the United States in terms of industry market share, which will account for 32.6 percent, according to figures from the meeting.