BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s industrial profits returned to positive territory in April, official data showed, with growth holding steady in the first four months, suggesting policies to shore up the economy are starting to take effect.Profits at China’s industrial enterprises above designated size rose 4.3% year-on-year in the January-April period, in line with the 4.3% rise in the first quarter, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.In April, profits increased by 4.0%, while in March, profits fell by 3.5%.Zhou Maohua, a macroeconomic researcher at China Everbright Bank, said the improvement showed “a rebound in market demand, macro policy support and last year’s low base.”Factory output has grown over the past month, driven by exports, but corporate profits have rebounded, even as retail sales unexpectedly slowed, suggesting the recovery remains uneven.Wei Ning, a statistician at the National Bureau of Statistics, said in a separate statement: “Domestic effective demand is still insufficient, and the external environment remains complex and severe.”Even the electric vehicle industry, which is vital to China’s economy, faces huge profit struggles as slowing demand and a brutal price war in the world’s largest auto market put pressure on domestic automakers.Industry data shows that the electric vehicle industry will account for 23.5% of new car sales in China by 2023, and auto manufacturing revenue will account for 8% of China’s GDP by then.Li Auto, one of China’s few profitable electric car makers, saw first-quarter profit fall 37%, missing expectations.Against the backdrop of accelerating growth in industrial output and rebounding exports, declining corporate profits have exposed the fragility of domestic demand, leaving room for China to introduce more policies to support the private economy, which provides tens of millions of jobs in China. Post。