China's industrial output sustains steady growth in October

China's industrial output maintained steady expansion in October amid industrial upgrading and improving market demand, official data showed on Friday.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement that value-added industrial output, an important economic indicator, expanded 5.3 percent year on year in October.

Speaking at a press conference, NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said that the relatively fast growth in industrial output since the start of this year is an important bright spot for the Chinese economy.

Fu said that thanks to policy support, market demand and enterprises' expectations improved in October, highlighting that the equipment and high-tech manufacturing sectors played an important role in bolstering output growth.

The NBS data showed that the equipment manufacturing sector's output climbed 6.6 percent from a year ago last month, 1.3 percentage points higher than the overall industrial output.

The high-tech manufacturing industry also posted stellar performance, with its output up 9.4 percent year on year in October. The growth pace outstripped the overall industrial output by 4.1 percentage points, indicating the intelligent and green transformation of the country's manufacturing industry.

Industrial output edged up 0.41 percent in October from the previous month. From January to October, it rose 5.8 percent year on year.

Industrial output measures the activity of enterprises, each with an annual main business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.8 million U.S. dollars).

In particular, the country's production of new energy vehicles, industrial robots, and integrated circuit products surged 48.6 percent, 33.4 percent, and 11.8 percent last month, respectively.

China's manufacturing sector returned to expansion in October after five consecutive months of contraction, earlier data showed. The purchasing managers' index for the sector came in at 50.1 last month, up from 49.8 in September and surpassing the boom-or-bust line of 50 for the first time since May.

Boosted by a raft of policy measures, the Chinese economy has achieved generally stable growth while making further progress, with major indicators seeing marked rebounds and positive factors accumulating, said Fu.