China's Chemical Sector Profit Reaches 246.08 Billion Yuan in First Eight Months

According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, industrial enterprises above the designated size recorded a total profit of 4,692.97 billion yuan from January to August, marking a modest year-on-year increase of 0.9%.

The report highlighted significant disparities at the sectoral level. Profits in the petroleum and natural gas extraction sector fell by 12.4% year-on-year to 236.47 billion yuan. Similarly, the chemical raw materials and chemical products manufacturing sector saw profits decline by 5.5% to 246.08 billion yuan.

A breakdown by ownership revealed that state-controlled enterprises realised a total profit of 1,515.65 billion yuan, a decrease of 1.7% compared to the same period last year. In contrast, share-holding enterprises achieved a profit of 3,493.19 billion yuan, an increase of 1.1%. Foreign-funded and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan-funded enterprises saw profits rise by 0.9% to 1,172.36 billion yuan, while private sector profits grew by 3.3% to 1,307.61 billion yuan.

At the industrial level, the mining sector reported a substantial profit contraction of 30.6%, with total profits standing at 566.11 billion yuan. The manufacturing sector, however, registered a 7.4% increase in profits, reaching 3,523.35 billion yuan. The electricity, heat, gas, and water production and supply sector saw its profits grow by 9.4% to 603.51 billion yuan.

Key Industry Performance

A more detailed look at specific industries showed varied performances:

* Profits in the electricity and heat production and supply sector increased by 13.0%.

* Non-ferrous metal smelting and rolling saw a rise of 12.7%.

* Agricultural and sideline food processing grew by 11.8%.

* Electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing rose by 11.5%.

* Computer, communications and other electronic equipment manufacturing increased by 7.2%.

* Specialised equipment manufacturing grew by 6.9%.

* General-purpose equipment manufacturing rose by 5.8%.

* The petroleum, coal and other fuel processing industry reduced losses year-on-year.

* The ferrous metal smelting and rolling industry shifted from loss to profit.

* The motor vehicle manufacturing industry declined by 0.3%.

* The non-metallic mineral products industry fell by 2.2%.

* The textile industry decreased by 7.0%.

* The coal mining and washing industry experienced a significant decline of 53.6%.

Financial and Operational Metrics

From January to August, the total operating revenue for these industrial enterprises was 89.62 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.3%. Operating costs amounted to 76.70 trillion yuan, up 2.5%. The operating profit margin stood at 5.24%, representing a slight decrease of 0.06 percentage points year-on-year.

At the end of August, the total assets of industrial enterprises above the designated size amounted to 185.08 trillion yuan, up 5.0% year-on-year. Total liabilities reached 107.34 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.4%, while total owners' equity stood at 77.73 trillion yuan, rising by 4.4%. This resulted in an asset-liability ratio of 58.0%, a slight increase of 0.2 percentage points from a year earlier.

Furthermore, accounts receivable stood at 27.24 trillion yuan, up 6.6% year-on-year, while finished goods inventory reached 6.73 trillion yuan, increasing by 2.3%.

The cost per hundred yuan of operating revenue was 85.58 yuan, an increase of 0.19 yuan year-on-year. Expenses per hundred yuan of operating revenue were 8.37 yuan, a decrease of 0.08 yuan.

At the end of August, operating revenue per hundred yuan of assets was 74.0 yuan, a decrease of 2.0 yuan year-on-year. Operating revenue per employee reached 1.835 million yuan, an increase of 57,000 yuan year-on-year. The inventory turnover days for finished goods stood at 20.5 days, an increase of 0.1 days. The average collection period for accounts receivable was 70.1 days, an increase of 3.7 days.

In a positive monthly development, profits of industrial enterprises above the designated size in August alone turned from a 1.5% year-on-year decline in July to a significant 20.4% increase.