CHONGQING, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- The output of China's industrial robots exceeded 100,000 in the first ten months of this year, up 70 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

The overall output this year will surpass 120,000, according to the ministry.

China is the biggest market for industrial robots in the world, accounting for about one third of the global demand.

The market volume of China's industrial robots is expected to reach 4.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2017 and increase to 5.9 billion dollars in 2020.

The robot industry has been listed as a key development area in the country's "Made in China 2025" strategy, which aims to upgrade the country's manufacturing sector.