BEIJING — China's leather industry registered stable expansion in the first four months of the year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.

The combined operating revenue of major manufacturers of footwear and leather, fur, feather and related products reached 350.69 billion yuan ($52.49 billion), up 7.9 percent year-on-year, according to the ministry.

These companies raked in total profits of 16.43 billion yuan in the January-April period, rising 1.6 percent from the same period last year.

Major enterprises in the industry are those with annual revenues of at least 20 million yuan.

In the first four months of the year, investment in China's light industry continued to increase, with investment growing by more than 20 percent in six sectors including agricultural and byproducts processing, leather and sports industries, data from the China National Light Industry Council showed.