Industrial sector puts up solid half

Equipment manufacturing surges 10.2%; high-tech up 9.5% y-o-y

China's industrial sector has maintained a steady recovery momentum in the first half, with equipment manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing posting rapid growth despite challenges and external uncertainties, officials and experts said.

Their comments came after data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday that China's industrial output, a gauge of activity in manufacturing, mining and utilities, grew 6.4 percent year-on-year in the first six months. The figure rose 6.8 percent year-on-year in June after a 5.8 percent growth in May.

Equipment manufacturing output surged 10.2 percent year-on-year while high-tech manufacturing jumped 9.5 percent — 3.8 percentage points and 3.1 percentage points higher than that of overall industrial output, respectively, during the period.