BEIJING, Aug. 21 -- China's banks have seen steady asset expansion since the start of the year, an official with the country's financial regulator said on Wednesday.

The assets of financial institutions in China's banking sector grew 7 percent year on year to 423.8 trillion yuan (about 59.43 trillion U.S. dollars) at the end of July, Xiao Yuanqi, deputy head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, told a press conference.

Xiao said the sector's non-performing loan ratio stood at 1.61 percent at the end of July, down 0.08 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

The sector's capital adequacy ratio stood at 15.53 percent at the end of June, indicating that the sector has sufficient "ammunition" to withstand risks, Xiao said.

Looking to the future, the administration will continue to help banks optimize the asset-liability structure and cultivate new sources of profit growth to enhance profitability, he added.