Almost 40 percent of China's machine tool manufacturers lost money in the first half of 2015, said a listed manufacturer in a stock filing Friday.

Weihai Huadong Automation Co. Ltd. said in a filing with Shenzhen Stock Exchange that despite optimism at the beginning of the year, the machine tool industry saw profits fall by 16.6 percent in the first half of 2015 year-on-year, and 39.4 percent of companies in the industry lost money.

The figures were cited from a report compiled by China Machine Tool & Tool Builders' Association.

The company was replying to an inquiry from the exchange on why its mid-year revenue was significantly lower than expectations in its 2014 year-end report.

Beijing No.1 Machine Tool Plant, Qiqihar No.2 Machine Tool (Group) Co. Ltd. and Shanghai Heavy Duty Machine Tool Plant saw their mid-year revenue decline about 22 percent, 57 percent and 66 percent respectively.

Listed machine tool manufacturers reported mixed but largely poor mid-year reports in China's stock exchanges. Shenyang Machine Tool Co. Ltd., the largest player in the industry, reported a revenue decline of 18.5 percent.