Suning Appliances, China's second largest consumer electronics retailer by store number, posted a profit of 2.17 billion yuan (US$317 million) for 2008, up 48 percent from a year before, on sales of 49.9 billion yuan, a 24 percent increase.

But sales per store in Suning fell an average 5.72 percent year-on-year, and those in the first-tier cities recorded the biggest average downturn of 6.02 percent. In the first half of 2008, average sales per store rose 0.76 percent.

The company said the fall is attributed to the slow-down in local economy, especially since the last quarter of 2008.

(China Daily March 2, 2009)