People look at a painting exhibit at the 18th China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industries Fair in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province, Dec 29, 2022. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - China's cultural sector maintained steady growth in terms of revenue last year, with new business models becoming more resilient, official data showed on Monday.

The combined operating revenue of major companies in the sector topped 12.18 trillion yuan (about $1.8 trillion) last year, up 0.9 percent year-on-year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Emerging business models in the cultural industry continued to build resiliency, with operating revenue up by 5.3 percent from a year ago to 4.39 trillion yuan

Five out of nine sub-sectors, including cultural content generation and production, and news information services, registered growth during the year 2022.

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Emerging business models in the cultural industry continued to build resiliency, with operating revenue up by 5.3 percent from a year ago to 4.39 trillion yuan. Sub-sectors such as digital publication and recreational smart drone production posted double-digit growth.

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The NBS data came from a survey of cultural companies with annual revenue of more than 20 million yuan or those meeting other standards set by the NBS.