China's power use rises in Jan-Feb

BEIJING — China's electricity consumption, an important indicator of economic activity, rose significantly in the first two months this year, suggesting economic improvement, official data showed on Monday.

Power use rose 6.3 percent year-on-year to 935.6 billion kilowatt hours in the Jan - Feb period, according to data with the National Energy Administration.

In the first two months, electricity use by primary industry climbed 12 percent from a year earlier. Power consumption by secondary industry went up 6.7 percent, while tertiary industry saw a 7.3-percent rise amid economic restructuring.

Meanwhile, residential power consumption grew 3.5 percent year-on-year, which compared to 11.8-percent growth in Jan -Feb last year, largely due to diminishing usage during the warm winter.

The increase in power usage in secondary industries, compared with negative growth in the same period last year, indicated continued growth momentum of China's industrial sector, said experts.

The figures for February, in which power use grew 17.2 percent year-on-year to 448.8 billion?kW hours, provided a more encouraging suggestion of growth.