China's logistics sector holds steady in July despite bad weather

BEIJING, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- China's logistics sector showed a modest retreat in July due to the impact of heatwaves and floods, yet the logistics prosperity index, as reported by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, remains above the threshold indicating sectoral health.

The index for July ticked down to 51 percent, a slight 0.6 percentage points lower than in June, but still within the expansion zone. This suggests that despite the adverse weather conditions, the trillion-dollar logistics market continues to perform well.

Sub-indexes for total business volume, new orders, fixed asset investment completion, and business activity expectations all pointed to growth, reinforcing the overall positive trend.

The total business volume index, which declined by 0.6 percentage points to 51 percent, saw expansion across various sectors including railway, road, air transport, warehousing and postal services.

Notably, the air transport sector went up 1.2 percentage points to 56.3 percent due to the boost from the summer travel season.

The e-commerce express industry, which has been thriving on the back of strong online shopping, saw a minor 0.7 percentage point pullback to 70.4 percent, but it remains in a high prosperity range.

The road and railway transport sectors, with indices at 53.2 percent and 51.6 percent, respectively, have maintained a stable performance since the start of the year, providing a solid foundation for the industry's ongoing stability.