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BEIJING - China's service sector continued to expand in May, lending steam to the country's stable economic growth and employment, official data showed Wednesday.

The Index of Services Production increased by 8.1 percent year on year in May, growing at the same speed as last month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The transportation, storage, postal services, information transmission, software and information technology service sectors maintained high growth rates.

Business activities expanded faster in May, with the business activity index for services standing at 53.5 percent, 0.9 percentage point higher than in April, NBS data showed.

Sectors such as retail trade, railway and air transportation, postal services, telecommunications, broadcasting, television and satellite transmission services posted active growth by expanding 59 percent and higher.

New orders and expectations for future business activities grew faster in May, pointing to strong demand in the service sector, according to the NBS.

NBS data showed that China's economy maintained steady expansion in May, with slower growth in property investment and fixed-asset investment but faster growth in consumption.