Almost all companies listed on China's two stock exchanges have released their interim reports, with combined net profits up 70.78 percent year-on-year to 319.1 billion yuan (42.2 billion U.S. dollars) for the first half of this year.

China Securities Journal reported Friday that 1,471 out of the 1,503 listed companies, which had year-on-year comparable data, recorded a weighted average earnings per share of 0.19 yuan for the first six months. Deducting new offerings, the figure was revised to 0.22 yuan, as against the 0.134 yuan for the same period of last year.

Between January and June, the 1,471 listed companies realized 3.57 trillion yuan in combined revenues, up 24.5 percent, and 468.7 billion yuan in gross profits, up 66.78 percent.

Their weighted average yield against assets stood at 7.81 percent, according to the newspaper.

(Xinhua News Agency August 31, 2007)