Excessive inventory and tough competition have hit Anta’s earnings, which have declined by almost 19 per cent.

The Chinese sports goods company said net profit in the first six months of the year decreased from 769.6 million yuan in 2012 to 625.7 million yuan this year.

It shut down 241 performance-based sportswear and sports lifestyle stores, taking the number to 7834.

The company says it will continue to close less optimal stores or with expiring leases for the remainder of the year.

“China’s sportswear industry still faces uncertainty associated with the unresolved excess inventory problem in the near-term,” said chairman and CEO Ding Shizhong.

But, the company is optimistic that the industry’s performance will improve as the Chinese government puts more efforts in expanding domestic demand, boosting urbanisation and increasing participation in sports.

Anta, which competes with Li Ning, also sells products through online platforms such as Taobao.com, amazon.cn, jd.com, vancl.com and 2gou.com.