BEIJING — China's software and information technology sector posted robust expansion in revenue and profits in the first half of the year, official data showed.

The sector's combined software revenue came in at 4.42 trillion yuan (about $683.68 billion) in the first six months, jumping 23.2 percent year-on-year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) showed.

From January to June, companies in the sector saw their profits total nearly 500 billion yuan, an increase of 13.6 percent from a year earlier. The growth rate went down by 12.3 percentage points from the level in the first quarter due to a rise in the base in the same period of 2020, the MIIT said.

The software sector's exports amounted to $24 billion in the first half, up 12.2 percent year-on-year. The exports growth picked up slightly from that in the first five months.

Specifically, information technology services continued rapid growth, with January-June revenue from e-commerce platform technology services and integrated circuit design climbing 32.4 percent and 24.1 percent, respectively.