BEIJING - China's retail sales grew 10.5 percent year on year to 2.43 trillion yuan ($383.8 billion) in July, slightly down from 10.6 percent growth recorded in June, official data showed Wednesday.

In the first seven months, retail sales grew 10.4 percent, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

Growth in rural areas continued to outpace that in cities.

Sales in rural areas rose 11.9 percent in July and 11.6 percent in January-July period, in contrast to the 10.3 percent and 10.2 percent growth seen in urban areas.

Earnings for catering services in July grew 12.2 percent, 0.6 percentage points higher than June, according to NBS statistician Lin Tao.

Chinese consumers favor online shopping. In the first seven months, online sales rose 37 percent year on year, Lin said.