BEIJING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- China's express delivery industry saw rapid growth last year, with double-digit increases in business revenue and volume, data from the State Post Bureau (SPB) showed.

Chinese delivery firms handled a total of 50.71 billion parcels in 2018, up 26.6 percent from the previous year, while total business revenue grew 21.8 percent year-on-year to 603.84 billion yuan (around 89.83 billion U.S. dollars), according to the SPB.

The country has remained the world's largest express delivery market for five consecutive years, accounting for more than half of the global express delivery market, the bureau said.

Meanwhile, the industry injected impetus into the growth of the Chinese economy, making more contributions to GDP and employment last year.

Express delivery services have become an inseparable part of Chinese life, with one in five people in China enjoying the services every day, SPB data showed.

China's express delivery market maintains speedy growth, with its structure and quality being continuously improved, said Liu Jiang, a researcher with the Development & Research Center of the SPB, adding that it provides momentum for the stable and positive development of the macro economy.