Profits at China’s industrial firms extended gains for a second month in September, adding to signs of a stabilising economy as the authorities launched a burst of supportive policy measures.
The 11.9 percent year-on-year rise came on the back of a surprise 17.2 percent gain in August and follows stronger-than-expected industrial and consumption activity over September.
For the first nine months, profits slid 9 percent from a year earlier, narrowing from an 11.7 percent decline in the first eight months, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday.
Industrial profits recovered quarter by quarter and swung to a 7.7 percent growth in the July-September period from declines over the previous two quarters, NBS statistician Yu Weining said in an accompanying statement.
A run of recent data has pointed to a steadying in the world’s second-largest economy, which expanded at a faster-than-expected clip in the third quarter after a rapid loss of momentum following a brief post-COVID bounce.
Analysts attribute the stabilisation to a series of policy measures rolled out in the past few months, but the persistent weakness in the crisis-hit property sector remains a major drag on the economy and corporate earnings.
Last week, Chinese battery giant CATL reported a sharp slowdown in profit growth in the third quarter, its weakest quarter since the start of last year amid slowing demand and stiff competition.
In his first remarks on policy following third-quarter gross domestic product data, China’s central bank governor Pan Gongsheng vowed to bolster the economic recovery, with a focus on expanding domestic demand while curbing financial risks.
According to a breakdown of the NBS data, state-owned firms saw earnings fall 11.5 percent in the first nine months, foreign firms booked a 10.5 percent decline and private-sector companies recorded a 3.2 percent slide.
Industrial profit numbers cover firms with annual revenues of at least 20 million yuan ($2.73 million) from their main operations.
Reuters
