China's Industrial Profits Edge Up 0.6% in 2025 as Manufacturing Leads

In 2025, China's industrial enterprises above designated size recorded total profits of RMB 7,398.2 billion, up 0.6% year on year, reflecting a modest overall improvement amid divergent performance across ownership types and sectors.

By ownership, state-controlled enterprises posted profits of RMB 2,056.1 billion, down 3.9% from the previous year. Shareholding enterprises reported profits of RMB 5,540.83 billion, a decline of 0.1%. Enterprises with foreign and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan investment achieved profits of RMB 1,744.74 billion, marking a 4.2% increase, while private enterprises generated RMB 2,281.06 billion in profits, unchanged year on year.

By sector, the mining industry recorded total profits of RMB 834.51 billion, down 26.2% year on year. The manufacturing sector achieved profits of RMB 5,691.57 billion, up 5.0%, while the electricity, heat, gas, and water production and supply sector reported profits of RMB 872.12 billion, an increase of 9.4%.

Performance among major industries showed sharp divergence. Profits in ferrous metal smelting and rolling surged by 3.0 times compared with the previous year, while non-ferrous metal smelting and rolling increased by 22.6%. The computer, communications and other electronic equipment manufacturing sector saw profits rise by 19.5%, electricity and heat production and supply by 13.9%, specialised equipment manufacturing by 5.7%, electrical machinery and apparatus manufacturing by 4.9%, and general-purpose equipment manufacturing by 4.2%. Processing of agricultural and sideline products increased by 3.2%, and automobile manufacturing rose by 0.6%. Losses in petroleum, coal and other fuel processing narrowed year on year. In contrast, non-metallic mineral products manufacturing declined by 1.7%, chemical raw materials and chemical products manufacturing fell by 7.3%, textiles dropped by 12.0%, petroleum and natural gas extraction decreased by 18.7%, and coal mining and washing plunged by 41.8%.

In 2025, industrial enterprises above designated size generated operating revenues of RMB 139.20 trillion, up 1.1% year on year, while operating costs reached RMB 118.75 trillion, an increase of 1.3%. The operating revenue profit margin stood at 5.31%, down 0.03 percentage points from the previous year.

By the end of 2025, total assets of these enterprises reached 188.41 trillion yuan, up 4.3% from the previous year-end. Total liabilities amounted to 108.58 trillion yuan, an increase of 4.2%, while total owners' equity rose 4.5% to 79.82 trillion yuan. The asset-liability ratio stood at 57.6%, down 0.1 percentage points from the previous year-end.

Accounts receivable totaled 27.43 trillion yuan by year-end, up 4.7%, while finished goods inventory reached 6.73 trillion yuan, an increase of 3.9%. The cost per 100 yuan of operating revenue was 85.31 yuan, up 0.16 yuan year on year, while expenses per 100 yuan of operating revenue were 8.62 yuan, down 0.02 yuan.

Efficiency indicators showed mixed trends. Operating revenue per 100 yuan of assets stood at 75.9 yuan, down 2.7 yuan from the previous year-end. Operating revenue per capita reached RMB 1.889 million, up RMB 55,000. Finished goods inventory turnover days increased by 0.6 days to 19.9 days, and the average collection period for accounts receivable lengthened by 3.6 days to 67.9 days.

In December, profits of industrial enterprises above designated size rose by 5.3% year on year.