Faced with slowing economic growth, retail chains in China are being forced to further improve their management and marketing capabilities to go through the sluggish period, said a report released on Thursday by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Ltd.

The report - China Power of Retailing 2013 - reviewed the country's retail industry over the last year, and is based on a survey conducted by Deloitte and the China Chain Store & Franchise Association of 192 retail companies and 108 retail stores in China.

The total sales of listed retail companies rose 12.2 percent year-on-year in 2012, a much slower growth rate than in recent years. Their net profit, which decreased 7.7 percent from 2011, posted the first drop in recent years, said the report.