Steel profits down, oil and coal up

China's iron and steel industries saw lower profits in the first five months of the year, state media reported. Citing National Bureau of Statistics figures, China's official press said profits in the country's iron and steel industry dropped 37.4%. Meanwhile, the oil processing and coking industry reported losses of US$2.7 billion. Other industries fared better. Oil and natural gas explorations soared with growth of 52.3% and the electric power sector saw profit growth of 43%. Coal sector profits went up 9.3%. Of the industries reported, it was the non-ferrous metal smelting and processing that saw the highest profit growth, with a jump of 106.9% in the first five months of the year.