BEIJING, May 27 Reuters Profits at China39;s industrial firms slumped in the first four months of 2023, official data showed on Saturday, as companies continued to struggle with margin pressures and soft demand amid a faltering economic recovery.

Profits fell 20.6 in JanuaryApril from a year earlier, compared with a 21.4 decline in the first three months, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics NBS.

In April alone, industrial firms posted a 18.2 drop in profit yearonyear, according to the NBS, which only occasionally gives monthly figures. Profits shrank 19.2 in March.

Overall, today39;s data shows that industrial enterprises, especially private and equityowned enterprises, continue to be affected by a combination of unfavourable factors such as the base effect, shortterm pressure on the economic recovery and the downward trend of PPI producer prices, said Bruce Pang, chief economist at Jones Lang Lasalle.

Chinese companies are struggling with both weak demand at home and softening demand in the country39;s major export markets.

Producer deflation deepened in April, with the producer price index PPI falling at the fastest clip since May 2020.

Lenovo, the world39;s largest PC maker, said this week that quarterly revenue and profit tanked in JanuaryMarch and it had cut 8 to 9 of its workforce to reduce costs, as global demand for personal computers PCs continued to slump.

Producers of steel and other industrial metals are also hurting. Prices for…