China's power use up 4 pct in first nine months

China's electricity consumption, a key barometer of economic activity, maintained stable growth in the first nine months of the year, official data showed on Thursday.

Power use increased 4 percent year on year to hit 6.49 trillion kilowatt-hours in the January-September period, according to the National Energy Administration.

Power consumption in the primary industry grew 8.4 percent year on year in the first nine months. Electricity consumed by the secondary and tertiary industries increased 1.6 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively. Residents' power consumption registered a year-on-year increase of 13.5 percent.

In September alone, China's power consumption reached 709.2 billion kilowatt-hours, up 0.9 percent year on year. Power use in the primary and secondary industries rose 4.1 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively, and dropped 4.6 percent in the tertiary sector.