BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- China's warehouse storage sector contracted in July, industry data shows.
The index tracking the sector's development fell 4.1 percentage points from the previous month to stand at 49.1 percent in July, according to a survey jointly released by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and CMST Development Co., Ltd.
It was the first time the sector fell into the contraction zone in the last four months.
A reading above 50 percent indicates expansion, while one below 50 reflects contraction.
Wang Yong, an executive assistant at CMST Development Co., Ltd., attributed the big drop to the recent disastrous weather.
Heavy rains and typhoons have slowed efficiency and raised operating costs in the warehouse sector, Wang said.
Business volumes notably dropped in July. The business volume sub-index stood at 48.9 percent, down 3.3 percentage points from the previous month, the data shows.
Bucking the trend, fees continued to rise, with the sub-index for fees remaining at 51.1 percent last month, above the boom-or-bust line.
The sub-index tracking expectations for future business activities hit 57.4 percent, showing that enterprises in the warehouse industry are confident they will recover their business growth, according to the survey. Enditem
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