Listed firms upbeat on earnings amid signs of steady economy

BEIJING - Most listed firms that have released earnings forecasts for the first three quarters foresee better profits than last year.

Of 230 mainland-listed companies that announced Q1-Q3 earnings forecasts as of Wednesday night, 182 predicted higher profits than the same period of last year, nearly 80 percent of the total.

Among them, 36 firms forecast year-on-year net profit growth of more than 100 percent.

Most firms expecting profit growth were in the industries of computers, communications and other electronic equipment manufacturing as well as chemical, electrical and mechanical products.

Of the 230 companies, 169 were small or medium-sized ones.

The increased earnings came as several industries continued to see recovering demand and rising prices.

Yechiu Metal Recycling (China) Ltd predicted a combined net profit of 179 million yuan ($27 million) for the first three quarters of the year, compared with losses in the same period last year, thanks to an improving nonferrous metal market.

Brother Enterprises Holding Co Ltd, a producer of fine chemicals, forecast a year-on-year net profit increase of 150-180 percent in the January-September period, citing growing demand.

Rising sales of electronic materials led Guangdong Chaohua Technology Co Ltd to expect a net profit surge of 683-907 percent during the period.

Mergers and restructuring also accounted for the profit growth of some listed companies.

China posted GDP growth of 6.9 percent in Q2, flat with the previous quarter and above the government's annual growth target of around 6.5 percent.

In July, while industrial output, fixed-asset investment and consumption all posted slower expansion than in June, other important indicators - electricity use, rail freight and new lending - saw faster growth.