Growth in fixed-asset investment, especially for the private sector, continued to weaken in July, indicating that the economy still faces heavy downward pressure, a spokesman for the National Bureau of Statistics said at a news briefing on Friday.

Fixed-asset investment increased by 8.1 percent in the first seven months year-on-year, compared with 9 percent in the first six months.

Fixed-asset investment in the private sector expanded by 2.1 percent in the first seven months, down from 2.8 percent in the January-June period and double-digit growth last year.

Sheng Laiyun, the NBS spokesman, attributed the weak growth in fixed-asset investment to the economic downturn both at home and abroad - including sluggish global demand and domestic economic restructuring - as well as the serious flooding and high temperatures that affected much of China in July.

"As the domestic economy is going through a key stage of structural adjustment, the pain of restructuring will continue," said Sheng.

Moreover, the private sector faces difficulty in financing, and local authorities should use policies to promote private investment more effectively, Sheng said.

Zheng Jian, deputy head of the Infrastructure Division of the National Development and Reform Commission, said the government will ease market access in some industries, such as transportation, to boost private investment.

China's retail sales rose by 10.2 percent in July, according to the NBS, down from 10.6 percent in June.

The country's industrial output rose by 6.0 percent in July, compared with 6.2 percent in June.

There was also a silver lining. The producer price index, which gauges the cost of goods at the factory gate, dropped by 1.7 percent in July year-on-year. Although it was the 52nd consecutive monthly decline, the rate of decline was easing, compared with a 2.6 percent drop in June.

"The lessening of the PPI decline is a positive sign indicating rising corporate profits, and it can help improve market sentiment and increase investment in the manufacturing sectors," Sheng said.

Bian Quanshui, an analyst at Sinolink Securities, wrote in a research note on Wednesday that "the PPI is expected to gradually rebound and turn positive this year".

In addition, from January to July, investment in the high-tech industry grew by 11.7 percent year-on-year - 0.5 of a percentage point higher than in the first half of the year - and 8.3 percentage points higher than overall industrial investment growth.

"The structure of investment is continually improving," said Wang Baobin, senior statistician with the NBS.

Wang Yanfei contributed to this story.