Oct 28 (Reuters) - Water heater-maker A.O.Smith AOS.N cut the upper end of its full-year profit forecast on Tuesday, as slowing economic growth in China has weakened demand for its water heaters in the region.

Shares of the company were down nearly 2% in premarket trading.

Tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump have driven up raw material costs, putting pressure on the company's profit margins.

"We are cautious about the remainder of the year primarily due to continued headwinds in the China market and the impact of weakening new home construction on residential water heating in North America," said CEO Steve Shafer.

The company said higher segment earnings and margins during the quarter were driven by previously employed restructuring efforts and cost controls in China.

The Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based company now expects adjusted earnings per share to be in the range of $3.70 to $3.85, compared with its prior forecast of $3.70 to $3.90.

Sales in North America, which accounted for more than 77% of its total annual sales in 2024, rose 6% to $742.8 million.

Third-quarter revenue increased 4% from a year earlier to $942.5 million.

Sales from other parts of the world, which includes China and India, fell 1% to $207.9 million.

Net income for the third quarter was $132 million, or 94 cents per share, compared with $120.1 million, or 82 cents per share a year, earlier. Analysts on an average expected 94 cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.

(Reporting by Anshuman Tripathy and Apratim Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

((Anshuman.Tripathy@thomsonreuters.com;))