China's Industrial Profit Growth Picks Up as Trade Risks Loom Large

China's industrial profits picked up pace in April, official data showed on May 27, giving policymakers cause for optimism that recent stimulus efforts are helping to keep the economy afloat despite trade tensions with the US.

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BEIJING —

US President Donald Trump's decision to single out China in his global trade war has stirred significant worries about an economy that has been reliant on an export-led recovery to drive momentum in the face of weak domestic demand and deflationary pressures.

Industrial profits rose 1.4 per cent year on year in the January-April period, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This compared with 0.8 per cent growth over the first quarter.

In April alone, profits rose 3 per cent, versus a 2.6 per cent rise in March.

Improving earnings are crucial to bolstering business confidence so that companies become more willing to invest and hire. Bloomberg Economics had forecast industrial profits would drop 1.5 per cent year on year in April.