Fosun International, the acquisitive Chinese investment group, posted Rmb6.86bn ($1bn) in net profits for the first half of 2018, a 17 per cent increase on the previous year as the company continues to buy up assets in China and overseas, in contrast to its peers.

The increase in profits for the group, which holds stakes in Club Med and Cirque du Soleil, marks a notable deceleration compared to past years. During the same period last year profits surged by 33.6 per cent.

Led by the aggressive dealmaker Guo Guangchang, Fosun has maintained momentum in buying up overseas assets while many of its peers have started to divest. As recently as early 2017, Fosun was considered part of a cohort of aggressive Chinese investors such as HNA, Dalian Wanda and Anbang Insurance, each of which were spending billions of dollars on overseas assets. Those three other companies have sold many of the assets they had recently purchased.