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China accounts for almost 50 per cent of mobile app downloads as global spending soars

  • Money spent on smartphone or tablet apps in 2019 will pass US$120 billion
  • The top five mobile apps for 2018 were Facebook, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat and Instagram

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The total spending on smartphone apps is expected to pass US$120 billion in 2019. Photo: AP

Mobile app downloads are surging around the world and nearly half come from China, according to a market tracker.

Mobile research firm App Annie forecast that the amount of money spent on apps for smartphones or tablet computers this year will grow five times as fast as the global economy, surpassing US$120 billion.

“Games will fuel the bulk of consumer spend growth in the app stores, as mobile gaming will continue to be the fastest growing form of gaming,” the firm’s State of Mobile report said.

“China will remain the largest contributor to consumer spend growth in the app stores; however, we expect to see a slight deceleration in the aftermath of the game licensing freeze in China.”

WhatsApp is one of the top five apps for Apple or Android mobile devices based on usage. Photo: Alamy
WhatsApp is one of the top five apps for Apple or Android mobile devices based on usage. Photo: Alamy
Some 194 billion mobile apps were downloaded worldwide last year, with people spending a total of US$101 billion on them or in them, according to the report.

China accounted for almost 50 per cent of total downloads of apps for Apple or Android mobile devices, according to App Annie.

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