China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday announced that the discrepancy between industrial output and power generation growth in May was due to industrial restructuring and the use of energy-efficient products.

Official data showed that industrial output expanded 8.9% in May from a year earlier, while power generation fell 2.7 %.

Although the two figures usually track one another, they've begun to diverge as many industries undergo structural change and improve their energy efficiency, the NBS said in an online statement.

Such discrepancies had occurred before, usually when the economy hit a turning point, said the statement.

The statement attributed the faster-than-expected industrial output growth to a rebound in the growth rate of heavy industry, accelerating growth in almost three-quarters of all 39 industrial categories, higher growth rates in 20 of the 31 provincial regions and output gains in quake-hit Sichuan province.

China