BEIJING — China's waterway freight volume rose 5.5 percent year-on-year in the first two months of the year, data from the Ministry of Transport showed.

More than 1.25 billion tons of waterway cargo were transported in the January-February period, according to the ministry.

In February alone, China's waterway freight volume stood at 571.24 million tons, said the ministry.

South China's Hainan province led the expansion among 31 provincial-level regions, reporting year-on-year growth of 24.6 percent, followed by Central China's Hubei province and North China's Tianjin municipality.