Briefly

State firms post higher profits

State-owned enterprises registered robust growth in the first two months despite low base effects, the Ministry of Finance said. The combined profits of China's SOEs rose 150 percent on a yearly basis to 548.94 billion yuan ($83.92 billion) in the first two months, according to ministry data. The growth rate offsetting base effects came in at 10.2 percent during the January-February period, the ministry said on its website.

Xiaomi plans smart electric car unit

Chinese tech company Xiaomi Corp said on Tuesday that it plans to establish a smart electric car unit, with an initial investment of 10 billion yuan ($1.52 billion). Lei Jun, chairman of Xiaomi, will become the CEO of the fully owned unit, and the company plans to invest $10 billion into the smart car business over the next 10 years.

Xinhua - China Daily