BEIJING - China's electricity consumption, an important indicator of economic activity, slightly recovered in October in a sign of an improving economic climate.

Power use rose 3.1 percent year on year to 450.8 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) in October, accelerating from the 2.7-percent rise seen a month earlier, the National Energy Administration (NEA) said on Saturday.

In the first ten months, power use went up 3.8 percent. Earlier, the China Electricity Council forecast power consumption to rise by 3.5 to 4 percent for the whole year, basing its estimate on the slowdown in economic growth as well as efforts to save energy, cut emissions and protect the environment.

China's gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by 7.3 percent year on year in the third quarter, compared with 7.5 percent in the second and 7.4 percent in the first.

Between January and October, electricity use by primary industry increased 1.1 percent from a year earlier. Power consumption by secondary industry reached 3.32 trillion kWh, up 3.9 percent, while tertiary industry saw a 6-percent rise to reach 555.8 billion kWh.

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