A worker checks a finished vehicle on the production line for electric vehicle maker Zeekr at its factory on May 29, 2025 in Ningbo, China.
Kevin Frayer | Getty Images News | Getty Images
China’s industrial profits plunged 9.1% in May from a year earlier, in the latest sign that Beijing’s stimulus efforts are falling short in boosting enterprises’ profitability.
That marked the largest monthly decline since October last year, when the industrial profits dropped 10%.
Cumulative profits at major industrial firms fell 1.1% in the first five months of 2025, compared to a year earlier, the data showed.
Citibank earlier this week upgraded China’s growth forecast for 2025 to 5% from 4.7%, in line with Beijing’s official target, boosted by robust growth in the first half of the year and expectations for resilient exports.
China’s exports this year have held up despite the erratic U.S. tariff policy, thanks to a surge in shipments to Southeast Asia and European Union countries. In May, the country’s exports rose 4.8% from a year earlier, even as the U.S.-bound shipment plunged 34.5% from a year ago.
Citi expects the country’s overall exports to grow a decent 2.3%, while factoring in an estimated 10% decline in shipments to the U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that a deal with China had been signed, without providing additional details. A White House official later clarified that “the administration and China agreed to an additional understanding of a framework to implement the Geneva agreement.”
The Geneva deal had faltered over China’s curbs on critical mineral exports and the U.S. tightening restrictions on tech and Chinese student visas.
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