Industrial profits slide in October

Industrial companies' profits fell 2.1 percent year-on-year in October, the steepest decline since September 2012, the National Bureau of Statistics announced on Thursday.

Analysts said the figure suggests that the economy is continuing to slow in the current quarter.

The October figure was the second profit decline this year, the first being a fall of 0.6 percent in August. Profits rose 0.4 percent in September.