BEIJING, March 6 (Xinhua) -- China's warehouse storage sector saw a mild decline in activity last month but is expected to maintain steady development, industry data showed.

The index tracking the sector's development went down 3.3 percentage points over the previous month to reach 48.9 percent in February, according to a survey jointly released by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and CMST Development Co., Ltd.

A reading above 50 percent indicates expansion, while one below that reflects contraction.

The decline was mainly due to the week-long Spring Festival holiday, according to the survey.

Meanwhile, the sub-index for inventory at the end of the month rose 8.9 percentage points to 59.8 percent, with steel, non-ferrous metals, construction materials and agricultural and sideline products reporting a large inventory increase.

The sub-index for business activity expectations stood at 56.5 percent, up 1.5 percentage points from the previous month.

As business production and operation gradually gather steam, the warehouse storage sector will log a significant increase in the near future, according to the survey.