BEIJING - The efficiency of China's economic growth, measured in terms of resource use and environmental impact, is rising but still relatively low, with huge regional disparities, a report shows.

The indicator of efficiency, measured by the output value of 1 cubic meter of discharge of waste gas or waste water, stands at 0.91 yuan (14 US cents) a cu m compared with 0.72 yuan a year earlier, said a report released on Saturday by the Beijing Technology and Business University.

The number was calculated by the nominal GDP of a region, divided by its annual pollutant discharge amount, based on data from the National Audit Office's 2010 yearbook.