This figure is higher than GSMA's forecast around half a year ago at the World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit, despite the fact that some Chinese provinces and cities are currently combating COVID-19 outbreaks.

Strong 5G demand on the Chinese mainland has made it the single largest 5G market in the world, with 5G connections accounting for over 75 percent of the global total at the end of 2021, according to the association's latest report "The Mobile Economy China 2022."

"China is one of the leading markets for 5G and has been playing an important role in accelerating the digital transformation of industries," said Sihan Bo Chen, head of Greater China for GSMA.

By early March, China had around 1.43 million 5G base stations and over 500 million 5G users. The country will work to ensure the number of 5G base stations tops 2 million this year, official data showed.