China's top industry regulator said on Monday that it will ramp up efforts to ensure stable industrial operations in the first quarter by beefing up policy support for key sectors and encouraging investment in manufacturing.

Xiao Yaqing, minister of industry and information technology, said his ministry's survey of more than 20,000 key industrial enterprises shows that more than 95.5 percent have resumed operations as of Feb 20, after the Spring Festival holiday.

Major sectors such as coal and automobiles also showed positive production data in January, and small and medium-sized companies' performances are also improving, which indicates steady recovery of the industrial economy, Xiao said.

But the foundation is not strong enough. The ministry will implement a series of policies and measures, including encouraging enterprises to upgrade their technologies and motivating telecom operators to accelerate 5G investment in order to boost industrial operations, Xiao added.

In January, approximately 431,000 new energy vehicles were sold in China, soaring about 140 percent year-on-year. China's NEV output also surged about 130 percent year-on-year to reach 452,000 units, said the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Xin Guobin, vice-minister of industry and information technology, said China's NEV industry has entered a new stage of large-scale rapid development. Though challenges exist, the sector is expected to maintain rapid growth this year.

Xin said the ministry will moderately accelerate the development of resources such as lithium and nickel to meet the demand for boosting battery production.

More efforts will also be made to improve the performance of safety features in auto batteries and their ability to withstand low temperatures, he added.

Meanwhile, the ministry expects the shortage of auto chips has gradually been eased, and it predicts the situation will further improve this year, considering that the world's major chip companies have beefed up production, and the supply capacity of domestic chip companies is also growing.

Tian Yulong, spokesman for the ministry, said China welcomes global semiconductor companies to invest in the nation, carry out cooperation with local companies and jointly contribute to the stabilization of the global integrated circuit supply chain.

"We will continue providing good policies and a good market environment for domestic and foreign chip companies, and treat all market players equally," Tian said.

Zheng Houcheng, head of the research institute at Yingda Securities Co Ltd, said China's industrial sector is seeing more positive factors this year than in 2021, and monthly industrial output figures in 2022 are likely to be better than last year.