China industrial profits returned to growth at the start of the year, adding to signs that the world's second-largest economy is on stronger footing.
Industrial profits jumped 10.2% in the first two months of 2024, compared with a 2.3% decline for all of 2023, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday. The result was partially thanks to a low base last year.
China's state-owned companies reported a 0.5% rise in profits for January and February, while profits at foreign companies jumped 31.2%. Private companies saw growth of 12.7%.
Profits in China's manufacturing sector expanded 17.4% in the first two months of the year, while that of the utilities sector surged 63.1%. The mining sector was the main drag on overall profit growth, seeing its profit drop 21.1% in the January-February period.
The main contributor to overall profit growth was equipment manufacturing, which recorded a 28.9% expansion from a year ago.
Thanks to improved domestic and foreign demand, China's consumer-goods manufacturing sector booked a 12.9% profit increase.
The statistics bureau publishes combined data for the first two months of the year to iron out distortions from the Lunar New Year holiday.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-26-24 2224ET
