China Merchants Securities Co., Ltd, a major Chinese securities firm, said its net profit rose 0.61 percent year on year to 1.37 billion yuan (202 million U.S. dollars) during the first half of 2010, despite sluggish performance of the country's stock market.

However, during the first half-year, the company's total assets shrunk 8.09 percent from one year earlier, to 88.7 billion yuan, it said in a statement delivered to the Shanghai Stock Exchange Monday.

Earnings per share, meanwhile, stood at 0.38 yuan, down 9.44 percent from one year earlier, the statement said.

The company faced a difficult time in the first half of 2010 due to the downturn of the stock market, it said.

As of June 30, Chinese stocks fell 26.82 percent from the beginning level of the year, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index closing at 2,398.37.

The downturn was pressed by adverse effects from the American's removal of economic stimulus policies and the European Union's debt crisis abroad, as well as the Chinese government's reigning in property prices, according to the statement.

China Merchants Securities said its profit was mainly brought by its businesses as a broker and investment bank, which helped the company net 1.9 billion yuan and 796 million yuan, respectively, according to the statement.

The price of its shares fell 0.65 percent to 21.42 yuan on the Shanghai bourse Monday.