BEIJING — China's furniture sector registered steady growth in the first eight months of the year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.

During the period, the industry's operating revenue increased 21.3 percent year-on-year to 494.04 billion yuan (about $76.7 billion), according to the ministry.

The combined profits reached 25.83 billion yuan during the period, up 27 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said.

In the first eight months, a total of 706.64 million items of furniture were produced, up 22.2 percent year-on-year, according to the data.