LUANDA, June 18 -- Five Chinese workers injured by burglars earlier this week in southern Luanda were in stable condition on Thursday but still receiving treatment in a Chinese clinic.

The robbery took place on Tuesday morning when eight armed robbers stormed into a Chinese brick plant close to the national stadium in southern Luanda, disarming a local security guard and rounded up five Chinese workers into a room, where they beaten and stabbed the victims for over 30 minutes before fleeing with over 300,000 Kuwanzas (2,500 U.S. dollars).

The Chinese workers, all with stab wounds and stick-inflicted injuries, and an Angolan worker whose armed was broken by the burglars, were rushed to the clinic of the Chinese railway construction company in Luanda.

The incident was reported to the Chinese embassy in Luanda which demanded a prompt police investigation.

The robbery was a tip of an iceberg of rising crimes in suburban areas of Luanda, particularly at night, apparently due to the country's economic condition badly hit by falling international oil prices.