China's bankcard transactions total $27.9T in first half

Bankcard transactions in China during the first half of 2011 reached 178.6 trillion yuan or US$27.9 trillion U.S. dollars.

According to data released by the China Banking Association, banks in China have issued a total of 2.67 billion bankcards as of the end of June, or roughly two cards for every Chinese citizen, according to the association.

Credit cards account for 230 million of the total number of bankcards that have been issued, with cardholders making transactions totaling 3.3 trillion yuan during the first half, according to the association.