China now world's biggest mobile market

By Staff and wire reports

HONG KONG, China -- According to China's telecom authorities, there were 120.6 million mobile subscribers in China at the end of July, rivaling the U.S. as the world market leader.

The mobile phone market attracted about 3.8 million new subscribers in July, according to the Ministry of Information Industry.

The surge in new subscribers pushes China into the position of the biggest mobile phone market in the world.

According to the U.S. Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association Web site, there are 120.1 million cellular phone users in the United States -- about 500,000 less than in China.

"Mobile phone users have grown faster than fixed-line users in China, by a long shot," said the MII spokesman.

The number of fixed-line subscribers in China grew by about 2.4 million during July to reach 166.8 million, he added.

Reuters contributed to this report.