BEIJING - China's total volume of freight transport rose in the first four months, but at a slower pace amid an economic slowdown, new data showed on Saturday.

The volume of freight transport by road stood at 11.5 billion tonnes in the first four months, up 8.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.

But the increase was slower compared to the double-digit growth during the same period last year.

During this period, a total of 1.61 billion tonnes of cargo were carried on waterways, up 6.3 percent year on year.

The railway freight stood at 1.26 tonnes in the Jan-April period, down 3.3 percent compared to the same period last year.

China's total freight transport volume rose 8.9 percent in the first four months last year.