BEIJING -- China's installed capacity of power batteries went up in the first five months of the year, according to data from the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance.

During the period, the installed capacity of the batteries stood at 160.5 gigawatt-hours (GWh), up 34.6 percent year-on-year.

In May alone, the output gained 41.2 percent year-on-year to 39.9 GWh, the data showed.

The country's new energy vehicle (NEV) sector sustained a sound growth momentum in the January to May period. The NEV output surged to 3.93 million units in the first five months, up 30.7 percent compared with the same period a year earlier, while the NEV sales rose 32.5 percent to 3.9 million units.

China has retained its top position worldwide in terms of NEV production and sales for nine consecutive years.