BEIJING - China's railway freight volume continued to rise in January, pointing to stabilizing economic activity, official data showed Wednesday.

Rail cargo volume grew 10.4 percent year-on-year in January to reach about 311 million tons, marking the sixth consecutive monthly rise, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

China's rail cargo volume started to increase in August after a six-month subdued period. Overall, rail cargo volume fell 0.8 percent year-on-year in 2016 to reach 3.33 billion tons.

In addition to GDP, rail cargo volume, electricity consumption and lending are important indicators of economic expansion as they represent the vigor of economic activities.

Chinese banks extended 2 trillion yuan ($291 billion) of new yuan loans in January, doubling from a month earlier, with more going to industrial firms than the property sector.