China industrial profits fall most since 2011

Beijing

CHINESE industrial companies' profits declined the most in at least three years last month, underscoring the challenge facing the nation's former growth drivers as the economy slows and commodity prices slump.

Industrial profits fell 8 per cent in December from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in Beijing on Tuesday, the biggest drop since at least October 2011, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. China will strive for 8 per cent growth in industrial output this year, an official said at a briefing according to a transcript on a government website.