Top Chinese chain stores sales up 10.8%

China's largest 100 chain stores realized sales of 1.87 trillion yuan (302.61 billion U.S. dollars) in 2012, up 10.8 percent year on year.

The number of chain store outlets reached 94,000 in 2012, up 8 percent from the previous year, the China Chain Store & Franchise Association (CCFA) said in a report Friday.

However, both sales and outlet growth saw their slowest expansion since the data was first compiled, according to CCFA.

Suning Commerce Group Co., Ltd. ranked at the top with year-round sales of 124 billion yuan.

The data showed that 62 companies developed online retail businesses, 3 more than the number recorded at the beginning last year.

The association attributed the slower growth to the industry's stabilizing development and changing consumption habits.