BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- A majority of Chinese listed firms expect improving profitability in 2018 as the country's economy is maintaining stable development.

Some 1,218 listed companies had released their advance 2018 financial reports so far, with 781 companies expecting rising net profits or the turning of losses into gains, Tuesday's Shanghai Securities News reported.

Profit growth of 344 companies is expected to exceed 50 percent, while 170 companies predicted their 2018 net profits will be more than doubled compared with 2017.

The newspaper said the improvements were caused by factors including strong performance of their primary businesses, restructuring and extraordinary items.

Sectors in chemicals, machinery manufacturing and electronics were bright spots, according to the advance financial reports.

Rising prices of chemical products boosted profitability of the chemical industry, with 91 companies expecting profit growth, ranking the first, followed by 71 companies in machinery manufacturing and 68 companies in electronics.

Yantai Jereh Oilfield Services Group Co. Ltd. predicted a net profit in a range of 529 billion yuan (about 76.67 million U.S. dollars) to 563 billion yuan, up 680 percent to 730 percent, due to recovery in the oilfield services market globally, which boosted demand for drilling equipment and oilfield technology services.

Zhejiang Supor Co. Ltd., a cookware company, predicted a profit increase of up to 30 percent year on year, thanks to increasing sales of cookware and electronic equipment.

Chinese economy showed strong resilience, with GDP expanding 6.7 percent in the first three quarters of the year, above the government's annual growth target of around 6.5 percent set for 2018.