China's energy use slows in 2014

Energy consumption for every 10,000 yuan ($1,563) of China's GDP fell 4.8 percent year on year in 2014, the biggest in the past five years, data said.

Shanghai municipality and Hebei and Jilin provinces posted the greatest year on year decline, dropping energy use by 8.71 percent, 7.19 percent and 7.05 percent, respectively, Xinhua reported on Thursday.

The figures were released by the National Development and Reform Commission, National Bureau of Statistics and the National Energy Administration.

China aims to cut energy use by 16 percent by the end of this year from the 2011 level, which was 0.793 tonnes of standard coal per 10,000 yuan of GDP.

It aims to bring the share of non-fossil energy to 15 percent by 2020 and 20 percent by 2030.

In the first half of 2015, China's power use rose only 1.3 percent, while economic growth held steady at seven percent, the lowest quarterly growth rate since 2009.