A man checks share prices on his mobile phone while waiting for his coffee at a Starbucks branch in Beijing July 16, 2015.[Photo/Agencies]

Chinese stock or fund investors who use Internet to trade reached about 56.28 million in the first half of 2015, an increase of 47.4 percent from the end of 2014, said a report released on Thursday.

Those who traded via mobile devices, meanwhile, grew 89.8 percent to hit 36.95 million during the same period, according to the report published by the China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC).

CINIC said the number of Internet users in China rose to 668 million by the end of June, up 2.91 per cent, or 18.94 million, compared to the end of 2014, with 48.8 percent Internet penetration rate across the Chinese mainland.

Among the proportion, those using smartphones to go online jumped to 88.9 percent, compared to 85.8 percent last year.

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89% of Chinese Internet users use smartphone to go online by Meng Jing from China Daily

Smartphones have proven themselves to be the ultimate gateway for Internet users in China as 88.9 percent of them choose to connect to the Internet via mobile devices, said a report released on Thursday.

According to the report from China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), the number of people using Internet rose to 668 million by the end of June, up 18.94 million compared with the end of 2014.

The proportion of those who access the Interent via smartphones jumped to a new high of 88.9 percent by the end of June, compared with 85.8 percent at the end of 2014.

The Beijing-based CNNIC said that the proportion of those who go online via personal computers or tablets has dropped. By the end of June, about 68.4 percent of Chinese netizens accessed Interent via desktop. The rate was 42.5 percent for laptops.

Tablets ranked the lowest with 33.7 percent of netizens using the mobile device to surf Internet. With size of smartphone screens increasing, they will further establish their status as the top devices for Internet users, said CNNIC.