Official figures published on Sunday show that factory activity on the mainland unexpectedly declined this month, while growth in the service sector slowed down.

The National Bureau of Statistics said the purchasing manager's index, or PMI, for the manufacturing sector came in at 49 this month, down from 50.2 in June.

A reading below fifty indicates contraction, anything above fifty shows growth.

Analysts polled by the Reuters news agency had expected a marginal improvement in factory activity on the mainland, with manufacturing PMI rising to 50.4.

A senior statistician for the bureau, Zhao Qinghe, said the fall was linked to factors such as weak demand and what he described as a "decline in prosperity of high-energy-consuming industries".

Service sector PMI fell to 53.8 from 54.7 in June. Composite PMI came in at 52.5 versus 54.1 last month.

State media reported on Thursday that a high-level meeting of the Communist Party had vowed to focus on delivering the "best possible results for the economy" this year. (RTHK/AFP/Reuters)