bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Daniel Ren

Listed mainland companies reported an average 32 per cent rise in profit  in the first quarter of  the year, thanks to  strong earnings  posted in the cement, biomedicine and food sectors.
Data from  financial information and software provider Wind Information shows  338 A-share firms that  published quarterly earnings reports before Wednesday this week posted total profits of 23 billion yuan (HK$27.35 billion), translating into a 32.2 per cent year-on-year rise.
But the  increase would not be enough to restore investor confidence amid further tightening monetary policies, analysts said.
In the first quarter of 2010, mainland-listed companies posted a 70 per cent profit jump from the previous year.
'The fast-expanding economy and high inflation are set to usher in more tightening measures,' said Shenyin Wanguo Securities analyst Li Xiaoxuan. 'Even if the central government stops further monetary tightening, it will be some time before investors regain confidence in the economy and corporate earnings.'
China's consumer inflation jumped 5.4 per cent last month,  the highest in nearly three years. The mainland's gross domestic product expanded 9.7 per cent in the first three months.
Economic analysts predict the central bank will raise deposit and lending rates for the third time this year within the second quarter.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has gained 7.8 per cent so far this year following a 14.3 per cent decline last year, but thousands of retail investors on the mainland are holding off buying though some stocks are said to be undervalued.
Citic Securities, the mainland's largest brokerage, estimated  profit growth of mainland-listed companies would range from 16 per cent to 25 per cent this year, slowing  from the 30 per cent level seen last year. But brokerages are still bearish on the market outlook because of low buying interest.
In the first quarter, Anhui Conch Cement - listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai - reported a 180 per cent profit jump on  rising sales volume and higher product prices.
The first-quarter performance by the listed firms beat the 22.4 per cent profit increase reported by the country's 120-odd leading  state-owned companies.
The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission said on Wednesday that the state-owned firms earned  208.6 billion yuan in the first quarter. The percentage increase by the firms slowed from 40.2 per cent a year ago.



First-quarter earnings rise an average 32pc at mainland firms