Ten out of the 16 A-share listed Chinese commercial banks have witnessed a shrinking workforce in the first half of 2016, according to analysis of their latest interim financial reports.

China's four biggest State-owned commercial banks by assets saw a total decrease of more than 25,000 staff members as of June 30, compared with the end of 2015. Employment at China Merchants Bank Co Ltd, a national joint-stock commercial lender, also dropped by more than 7,700 over the same period.

Some media reports described the shrinkage as "a big wave of job cuts", but China Merchants Bank denied that in a statement, saying that the shrinkage of staff numbers was mainly due to an adjustment of its employment mode in line with the State's laws and regulations.