China’s Metals Industry Racked Up Huge Profits in First Quarter

China’s metals industry began this year with its biggest profits in at least a decade as soaring prices for aluminum and copper handed the sector a major boost.

Total profits for smelting & pressing of non-ferrous metals across the country more than doubled to reach 142 billion yuan ($21 billion) in the first quarter, according to National Bureau of Statistics data released on Monday. That’s the highest level for the period in data going back to 2016.