BEIJING, March 17 -- China's industrial production saw steady growth in the first two months of this year, driven by robust manufacturing performance and the sustained effect of combined macro policies, official data showed on Monday.

China's value-added industrial output, an important economic indicator, went up 5.9 percent year on year during the January-February period, up 0.1 percentage points from the full-year growth rate of 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The overall industrial output expansion, fuelled by the robust performance of the equipment manufacturing sector, was achieved despite a high comparative base during the same period last year, NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui told a press conference.

In terms of sectors, the value-added of mining increased by 4.3 percent, manufacturing by 6.9 percent, and the production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas and water by 1.1 percent during the period, according to the data.

The value-added output of the equipment manufacturing sector rose by 10.6 percent year on year, an increase of 2.9 percentage points from the full-year growth rate of last year, providing strong support for the stable growth of overall industrial production, the data showed.

"Amid the accelerating integration of technological and industrial innovation, cutting-edge technologies such as information technology and artificial intelligence are increasingly driving industrial transformation, becoming new growth drivers for industrial development," Fu said.

The high-tech manufacturing sector saw a stellar performance, with its value-added output climbing 9.1 percent year on year. The production of industrial robots and integrated circuit wafers increased by 27 percent and 19.6 percent, respectively, according to Monday's data.

China's new energy industries have experienced strong growth, with new energy vehicle production surging 47.7 percent year on year and lithium-ion power battery output for automobiles rising 37.5 percent from the previous year, according to Fu.

The industrial output is used to measure the activity of large enterprises, each with an annual main business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.79 million U.S. dollars).

Fu noted that more proactive and effective macro policies, coupled with breakthroughs in technologies such as artificial intelligence, have driven an improvement in corporate expectations. Last month, the purchasing managers' index for the manufacturing sector came in at 50.2, up 1.1 percentage points from the previous month and surpassing the boom-or-bust line of 50.

Despite steady industrial production growth, some enterprises are experiencing poor profitability due to structural imbalances in market supply and demand, Fu said, stressing the need to foster the integrated development of technological and industrial innovation and enhance corporate operations.