Driven by rising demand from the new-energy and AI industries, copper and aluminum prices remained elevated, pushing profits in the non-ferrous metals sector up 117.1 percent. The petroleum processing industry returned to profitability, while the chemical sector saw profits rise 71.6 percent.

　　High-tech manufacturing maintained double-digit profit growth, rising 44.7 percent and contributing 8.0 percentage points to overall industrial profit growth, the data showed.

　　Within this sector, optoelectronic device manufacturing and discrete device manufacturing saw profits rise 53.8 percent and 40.6 percent, respectively, while electronic specialty materials manufacturing surged 665.4 percent.

　　Corporate cost burdens continued to ease. For every 100 yuan of operating revenue, industrial firms incurred 84.95 yuan in costs in the January-May period, down 0.59 yuan year on year, marking the fifth consecutive month of decline.

　　The operating profit margin stood at 5.56 percent, up 0.63 percentage points from a year earlier and the highest level among all cumulative periods since 2024, Yu noted.

　　"Looking ahead, the authorities will make full use of macro policies, strengthen both counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical adjustments, continue to expand domestic demand, optimize supply, and foster new drivers of growth to promote high-quality industrial development," the statistician said.