emirates7 - China's industrial sector posted strong profit growth in the first quarter of 2026, official data showed on Monday.

Profits of China's major industrial firms increased 15.5 percent year-on-year to reach 1.696 trillion yuan (about US$247.3 billion) during the January-March period, accelerating by 0.3 percentage points from the growth posted in the first two months of the year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In March alone, profits at major industrial companies increased 15.8 percent from a year earlier, with the pace of growth accelerating by 0.6 percentage points from the January-February period.