BEIJING -- China's tax revenue grew faster in Q1, official data showed on Thursday.

The tax authority collected 3.33 trillion yuan ($490 billion) of revenue (excluding export rebates). It represents an increase of 11.8 percent from a year ago, compared with an annual rise of 4.8 percent registered in 2016, according to the State Administration of Taxation.

The growth is buoyed by positive economic indicators, notably the producer price index, a main gauge of inflation at the factory gate which shows the economy firming up, Zheng Xiaoying, a senior official of the administration said at a press conference.

In breakdown, the central government collected 1.54 trillion yuan and the local governments collected 1.79 trillion yuan, an increase of 11.1 percent and 12.4 percent respectively.

The service sector contributed 55.7 percent of the total, 11.6 percentage points higher than secondary industries, reflecting improvement of industrial structure, Zheng said.

Nonetheless, tax revenue from secondary industry gained steam, showing the real economy is improving, Zheng added.