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BEIJING, March 5 (Xinhua) -- China's "sharing economy" took off in 2016 with a 103-percent increase in transaction volume, according to a new report.

The sector saw deals worth some 3.45 trillion yuan (500 billion U.S. dollars) last year, according to a report released by the Sharing Economy Research Center under the State Information Center.

During that period, a total of 600 million people were involved in the industry, up 100 million from the previous year.

Transport, short-term house renting and medical services posted strong growth, it said.

Enterprises in the sector raised 171 billion yuan last year, an annual increase of 130 percent, driving development of online streaming and bike-sharing, according to the report.

The sector will grow at an average annual rate of 40 percent over the next few years to account for more than 10 percent of the country's GDP by 2020, the report predicted.

China is likely to develop mega-enterprises in the burgeoning sector, which is seeing a reshuffling of players, said Prof. Li Fuyou with Xi'an Jiaotong University.

The government will continue to support and guide the development of the sharing economy, according to a government report delivered Sunday at the opening meeting of the top legislature's annual session.

Rules will be formulated for emerging industries with the principle of "encouraging innovation and conducting regulation in a tolerant and prudent way," the report read.