China's logistics industry sees slower growth

BEIJING - China's logistics industry expanded at a slightly slower pace in June compared with a month earlier, according to figures released on Friday.

The logistics performance index (LPI) for June dropped 53.1 percent, down 0.1 percentage point from May, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing announced in a statement on its website.

A reading above 50 percent indicates expansion from the previous month, while a reading below 50 percent indicates contraction.

The index has dropped for three consecutive months since April, but the rate of decline last month narrowed from a drop of 1.6 percentage points in May.

He Hui, deputy director of the China Logistics Information Center, said most sub-indices stayed above the boom-bust line of 50 percent, showing that the sector has maintained steady growth momentum.

The sub-index for the cost of main business dropped by 0.2 percentage points to 58.1 percent, while that for main business profits rose 4.5 percentage points to 56.1 percent, the statement said.

The changes in those two indices indicate that the sector's growth quality and efficiency are improving, according to He.

The sub-index for new orders rose 1.5 percentage points to 54.6 percent, indicating robust demand for logistics.

The business outlook index dropped slightly but was still above 60 percent, which means the sector will continue to see steady growth in the future, the statement said.

The federation began collecting LPI data from more than 300 logistics companies in December 2011. Since then, the index has stayed above 50 percent.