Electricity consumption in China's tertiary industry grew rapidly in the first half of 2026, fueled by demand from electric vehicle charging and battery-swapping services and internet data services, according to an official with the National Energy Administration (NEA).
Data showed that China's electricity consumption increased by 5.3 percent year on year in the first half of 2026.
During the first half of this year, energy use in the primary, secondary, and tertiary industries and individual households increased by 4.9 percent, 5.1 percent, 8.0 percent, and 3.1 percent year-on-year, respectively.
"Electricity consumption in the tertiary sector grew rapidly. Driven by the rapid development of high-tech industries including new energy vehicles and artificial intelligence, electricity consumption in the electric vehicle charging and battery-swapping services and internet data services saw strong growth, reaching 81 billion kWh and 49.4 billion kWh respectively, representing year-on-year increases of 56.9 percent and 44 percent respectively, boosting the national total electricity consumption by 0.9 percentage points," said Xing Yiteng, deputy director of Department of Development and Planning of the National Energy Administration.
The secondary sector was the main driver of total electricity consumption growth, contributing 3.3 percentage points to the overall electricity consumption increase.
Electricity consumption in high-tech and equipment manufacturing sector maintained rapid growth, increasing by 9.8 percent year-on-year, 6.0 percentage points higher than the same period last year.
Electricity consumption in consumer goods manufacturing sector climbed 6 percent year-on-year, 5.8 percentage points higher than the same period last year.
Regionally, the fastest-growing electricity consumers during the period were Xizang, Hainan, Guangxi, Xinjiang, and Guangdong, according to the NEA data.
Electricity consumed by China’s tertiary industry expands in H1
The United Nations Security Council on Thursday held its first closed-door straw poll voting conducted by its 15 members on the candidates for the next UN secretary-general.
In the non-binding poll, Security Council members are asked in secret ballots whether they "encourage", "discourage" or have "no opinion" on each candidate. The results are not officially released.
A candidate must receive at least nine "encourage" ballots and no "discourage" veto by any of the five permanent members -- China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States -- in order to be recommended by the Security Council and appointed by the UN General Assembly. Zenon Mukongo Ngay, the UN permanent representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council for the month of July, said that the next Security Council informal vote will be decided in the coming days and chaired by Denmark which holds the Security Council presidency in August.
"The first round of straw poll has taken place. The candidates will be informed of the results through the respective permanent representatives of nominating member states. The president of the [UN] General Assembly will also be informed that the straw poll has been conducted," Ngay told reporters after the conclusion of the secret vote.
Looking at past cycles, voting will probably run through the summer and finish around late September or early October. The process could drag on even longer if no consensus candidate emerges.
The current UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres took office in January 2017, and was reelected in 2021. His term ends on December 31 this year. According to the UN Charter, the secretary-general serves a five-year term and is eligible for reelection.
All seven candidates were on the straw poll. They are: Michelle Bachelet, former Chilean president and former UN high commissioner for human rights; Maria Fernanda Espinosa, former UN General Assembly president and former foreign minister and defense minister of Ecuador; Rafael Mariano Grossi of Argentina, current director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency; Rebeca Grynspan, former vice president of Costa Rica and current secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development; Olara Otunnu of Uganda, former UN under-secretary-general; Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett, Guyana's permanent representative to the United Nations, and Macky Sall, former president of Senegal.
UN Security Council holds straw poll on secretary-general candidates
