BEIJING (Reuters) – China's industrial profits recorded a small increase in the first quarter compared with the first two months, official data showed on Saturday, pointing to an uneven recovery in the world's second-biggest economy. The evidence was further strengthened.
Profits at Chinese industrial enterprises rose 4.3% year-on-year in the first quarter, slower than the 10.2% rise in the first two months, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Profit in March was down 3.5% from the same month last year. NBS did not provide a breakdown of the monthly numbers from January to February, but said at the time that the monthly numbers had been increasing since August 2023.
The numbers complemented a number of economic indicators in March, including retail sales and industrial production, which showed weakness in domestic demand despite strong GDP growth in the first quarter.
Signs of economic momentum in the early months were shown to be gradually giving way to concerns about weak domestic demand.
People's Bank of China officials last week expressed caution about credit expansion amid weakening real credit demand.
In early April, Chinese electric vehicle battery company CATL reported a return to growth in first-quarter profits, but sales declined for the second consecutive quarter due to slowing demand and increased competition.
Fitch downgraded China's sovereign rating outlook to negative, citing risks to public finances as the economy faces increasing uncertainty in its transition to a new growth model.
The industrial profit figures cover companies with annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan ($2.76 million) from their main operations.