BEIJING — China's home appliance sector saw steady expansion in the first half (H1) of the year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.

During the period, the industry's operating revenue gained 33.1 percent year-on-year to 829.1 billion yuan (about $128.3 billion), according to the ministry.

The combined profit of the industry reached 49.81 billion yuan during the period, up 14.7 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said.

In the January-June period, China's outputs of refrigerators and washing machines hit 44.35 million units and 42.94 million units, respectively, the data showed.