China's light industry registers robust growth in first four months

BEIJING -- China's light industry recorded steady growth in the first four months of the year, data from the China National Light Industry Council shows.

Investment in major sectors of the industry logged double-digit growth, with that in six sectors, including agricultural and sideline products processing, food manufacturing and leather, rising more than 20 percent, said the council.

In the same period, the sales of daily necessities saw rapid growth. Retail sales of grain, oil and food as well as beverages, climbed by 9.5 percent and 10.4 percent year-on-year, respectively.

During the first quarter of 2022, the combined operating revenue of light industry firms with annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan ($2.97 million) rose 9.9 percent year-on-year to 5.41 trillion yuan.

Companies in the light industry raked in total profits of 301.02 billion yuan, up 1.2 percent year-on-year and reversing the downward trend in the January-February period.