In the first five months, the value-added industrial output grew at 6.5 percent compared to the same period last year, according to the official data.

The 6.5 percent increase accelerated from the 6 percent increase in the same month last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

In the first five months, industrial output rose 6.7 percent year on year.

Industrial output, officially called industrial value added, is used to measure the activity of designated large enterprises with annual turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.9 million U.S. dollars).

Ownership analysis showed that industrial output of state-holding enterprises was up 6.2 percent in May, while output of share-holding enterprises grew 6.8 percent. Meanwhile, industrial output of enterprises funded by overseas investors increased 5.9 percent.

In a breakdown, manufacturing output expanded 6.9 percent year on year in May, while mining output growth rose 0.5 percent year on year.