BEIJING, May 1 (Xinhua) -- The overall demand for social logistics has maintained steady growth in China in 2019, but the growth rate has slowed down.

The total social logistics rose 5.9 percent last year to 298 trillion yuan (about 42.15 trillion U.S. dollars), but the growth rate was 0.5 percentage points lower from the previous year, according to the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP).

In 2019, the total cost of social logistics was 14.6 trillion yuan, up 7.3 percent year on year, down 2.5 percentage points from the previous year.

The ratio of social logistics cost to GDP was 14.7 percent, down 0.1 percentage points from the previous year.

The total revenue of the logistics industry maintained rapid growth to 10.3 trillion yuan in 2019, up 9 percent year on year.

The structure of logistics demand has been optimized.

The contribution rate of industrial logistics demand has further slowed down, while the domestic demand for logistics has continued to increase, the CFLP said.

New industries and new business modes have been developing rapidly, becoming an important force supporting the structural adjustment of logistics demand, the CFLP said.