Industrial profits drop 3pc in China

China's industrial firms saw overall profits decline further in the January-October period as Covid-19 outbreaks flared up and cities imposed new virus curbs, including targeted lockdowns, dampening economic activity.

Industrial profits fell 3 percent in the first 10 months of 2022 from a year earlier.

That compares with a 2.3 percent drop for January-September, National Bureau of Statistics data released yesterday showed.

Among the industrial enterprises, profit of private companies dropped by 8.1 percent to 1.96 trillion yuan yearly, while profits of foreign and Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan-invested enterprises decreased by 7.6 percent to 1.66 trillion yuan.

However, profits at state-owned enterprise profits slightly increased 1.1 percent to 2.26 trillion yuan.

"Recent outbreaks of domestic epidemics have frequently occurred, the risk of global economic recession has intensified, and industrial enterprises are facing greater pressure," the bureau said.

Overall industrial profits have been decreasing since July and profits declined for 22 out of 41 industrial sectors.

The petroleum, coal and fuel processing industry saw profits tumble 70.9 percent. Profits for manufacturers were down 13.4 percent in the first 10 months.

Meanwhile, the mining sector's profits grew 60.4 percent in January-October, compared with a 76.0 percent gain for the first nine months.