GUANGZHOU - Midea Group, a leading home appliances maker in China, reported a 17.4-percent annual growth in net profit in the first half of 2019.

The company earned a net profit of 15.2 billion yuan ($2.1 billion) in the first six months, according to its interim results report filed to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Friday.

Over the period, the company, based in the city of Foshan in South China's Guangdong province, raked in revenue of 153.8 billion yuan, up 7.8 percent year-on-year.

Midea said in the report that it had continued to ramp up its research and development efforts and further develop its robotics and smart home appliances businesses in the January-June period.

Founded in 1968, Midea plays a leading role in areas including consumer appliances, robotics and industrial automation systems.