China Industrial Profit Growth Slowed in July

Profit growth in China's industrial companies slowed in July as heat waves in the country forced many factories to halt production, said the National Bureau of Statistics.

China's industrial profit rose 16.5% in July, down from a 19.1% gain in June, according to official data released on Sunday.

The deceleration of profit growth was also in line with the economic slowdown in July as Beijing's efforts to lower debt levels and to curb property speculation started to weigh on growth.

The statistics bureau said the nation's state-owned enterprises witnessed a rebound in profitability, especially those in the coal and steel sectors.

In July, China's industrial companies' debt-to-equity ratio decreased to 55.8%, compared with a 55.9% level in June.

Write to Grace Zhu at grace.zhu@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 27, 2017 22:23 ET (02:23 GMT)