BEIJING, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) - China's sports sector output totaled 2.2 trillion yuan (326.3 billion U.S. dollars) in 2017, up 15.7 percent year on year, official data showed.

(File photo: VCG)

Manufacturing of sports products and other related items made up the lion's share of the sector's overall output, reaching over 1.35 trillion yuan in 2017, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics and the General Administration of Sports of China, which started to report the sector's performance in 2016.

Sports services maintained robust growth momentum. Sports contests and fitness activities markets rose 39.2 percent and 47.5 percent year on year respectively.

Construction of sports facilities like parks and stadiums surged 94.7 percent year on year as China is speeding up development of a sports-loving nation.

China released guidelines last December to propel its sports industry growth, aiming to grow it to a 2 trillion yuan sector by 2025.