BEIJING, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Share repurchases conducted by listed firms on China's A-share market have hit a record high in the first seven months of 2019 as companies showed a rising appetite for buying back their own shares amid market volatility and policy support.

As of July 31, listed companies repurchased their stocks valued at an all-time high of 97.9 billion yuan (about 14.2 billion U.S. dollars), more than 1.5 times the total value of the stock repurchases in 2018, according to information service provider Wind.

The figure continued the buyback boom since last year, with 782 companies buying back a total of 61.7 billion yuan of their own stocks in 2018, nearly seven times the amount of 2017.

In July alone, the repurchased shares were valued at 35.6 billion yuan, setting a new monthly record.

Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co., Ltd. conducted 5.8 billion yuan of share repurchases, ranking the top in terms of repurchase value.

Analysts believe share repurchase operations can boost overall market sentiment, raise stock prices and increase the liquidity of stocks.

The Chinese government released a guideline last year on supporting listed companies' stock repurchases by encouraging listed companies to conduct equity incentives and employee stock ownership plan.