BEIJING — China's producer prices rose at a faster pace in May, bolstered by steady recovery in domestic demand, official data showed on June 9.

China's producer price index (PPI), which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, went up 9 percent year-on-year last month, accelerated from the 6.8-percent growth in April, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

On a monthly basis, the PPI gained 1.6 percent, quickening by 0.7 percentage points from April, data from the NBS showed.

The PPI for the country's domestic oil and natural gas extraction sector grew 1.7 percent month-on-month in May, up by 1.3 percentage points from the growth in April, due to the rise in international crude oil prices.

In the first five months, the PPI growth averaged at 4.4 percent year-on-year, according to the NBS.

The PPI data came along with the release of the consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, which gained 1.3 percent year-on-year in May.