BEIJING, Dec. 12 -- China's industrial output grew 7.2 percent year on year in November, down from a 7.7-percent increase in October and 8-percent growth in September, official data showed on Friday.

On a month-to-month basis, industrial output rose 0.52 percent from October, the same as the figure recorded in the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a statement.

For the first 11 months, industrial production growth decelerated to 8.3 percent year on year, down 0.1 percentage points from the first ten months of 2014, the NBS said.

Industrial output growth has decelerated notably in the last four months. November's growth rate was the second-lowest monthly reading since April of 2009, with only August of this year recording a lower rate.

In August, year-on-year industrial output growth tumbled to 6.9 percent, raising market concerns that the "world's factory" was losing growth momentum.

China uses industrial production, officially called industrial value added, to measure the business activities of designated large enterprises, each with annual turnover of at least 20 million yuan (3.27 million U.S. dollars).

The data came as another sign of downward pressure on the world's second-largest economy.

At a crucial economic policy meeting that concluded Thursday, China's leaders said the economy still faces many challenges and "relatively big" downward pressures, such as difficulties for businesses and emerging economic risks.

In the third quarter, growth slid to a low of 7.3 percent, a level not seen since the 2008/2009 global financial crisis, dragged down by a housing slowdown, softening domestic demand and unsteady exports.