Industrial sector sees 20.5% surge in profits

THE profits of Chinese industrial companies grew at their fastest pace in nearly a year last month, indicating strengthening economic stabilization in the world's largest manufacturing base.

Net earnings among Chinese industrial companies rose 20.5 percent from a year earlier to 500.1 billion yuan (US$80.3 billion) in October, the National Bureau of Statistics said yesterday.

That was a sharp acceleration from the increase of 7.8 percent in September and the strongest gain since December 2011.

In the first 10 months, industrial companies' profits grew 0.5 percent to 4.02 trillion yuan, reversing the 1.8 percent contraction of the first three quarters.

"It is encouraging to see China's manufacturing sector starting to earn money again, which proves recovering demand and provides foundation for more investment," said Li Maoyu, an analyst at Changjiang Securities Co.

The profits increase added to evidence of a strengthening industrial sector in recent months.

The preliminary reading of the HSBC China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to a 13-month high of 50.4 for November, HSBC Holdings Plc said last week. As the earliest available indicator of the industrial sector's vitality, the index pointed to expansion in largely private companies for the first time in more than a year.

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