China's television manufacturing industry is struggling with narrowing profits as sales went down and manufacturing costs kept climbing, forcing TV makers to seek opportunities in the high-end market.

In the first half of 2017, the net profit margin of China's TV manufacturing industry came to less than one percent, according to information from a press conference by China Video Industry Association (CVIA) and industry service provider All View Cloud.

The industry plight came against the backdrop of shrinking sales and surging costs of related materials. In the first six months, domestic retail sales of television went down 7.3 percent year on year to 21.81 million units, while exports stood at 26.62 million units in the first five months, down 6.1 percent.

Ren Guanjun, senior vice president of communications and marketing at Letv, attributed the sluggish market not only to China's economic slowdown and property controls, but also to the low-price competition among market players.

Prices of panels, a key component of the TV set, jumped more than 40 percent since last year, piling further pressure on manufacturers.

The difficulties have forced TV makers to rethink their strategies and put more focus on the medium- and high-end market.

The problem in the industry, according to CVIA deputy secretary general Peng Jianfeng, lies in structural overcapacity -- low-end products are over-supplied while high-level demands are not being sufficiently met.

Given the mismatch, there are still huge opportunities for producers if they can step up efforts to tap the unmet demands, Peng said.