BEIJING, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- China's value-added industrial output, an important economic indicator, expanded 5.6 percent year on year in the first 10 months, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Thursday.

The growth rate was flat with that in the first three quarters, according to the NBS.

In October alone, industrial output climbed 4.7 percent, down from 5.8 percent registered in September.

China's industrial output, officially called industrial value added, is used to measure the activity of designated large enterprises with annual business turnover of at least 20 million yuan (about 2.9 million U.S. dollars).

In a breakdown by ownership, the output of state-controlled enterprises went up 4.8 percent, that of joint-stock companies went up 5.4 percent, and that of overseas-funded enterprises increased by 2.1 percent.

The production and supply of electricity, thermal power, gas and water reported a year-on-year increase of 6.6 percent in October, the fastest among the three major sectors, which also include mining and manufacturing.

Manufacturing output rose 4.6 percent year on year, and mining output rose 3.9 percent.

High-tech manufacturing led the overall industrial output growth with an 8.3-percent increase last month.