BEIJING - Profits at major Chinese industrial firms dropped 0.3 percent year on year in June, down from a 0.6 percent growth posted in May, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday.

He Ping, an official with the Department of Industry at NBS, attributed the decline to the drop in price of industrial goods, rise in unit costs, and a large base of comparison last year.

Despite the fall, industrial companies have been profiting at a stable level with the total percentage decline slowing every month, He said, adding that the interest rate cuts have been very effective in helping the companies reduce financing costs and boost revenue.

Profits at industrial companies with annual revenues of more than 20 million yuan ($3.27 million) totaled 589 billion yuan in June, making total profits 2.84 trillion yuan in the first half, down 0.7 percent year on year. The decline narrowed 0.1 percentage point from the rate seen in the January-May period.

Of all the 41 categories, 30 sectors registered year on year growth while 11 industries such as mining and car manufacturing saw declines.

In the first half, the prime operating revenue of industrial firms gained 51.8 trillion yuan, up 1.4 percent while the actual cost climbed 1.5 percent to 44.6 trillion yuan.