BEIJING — China's textile industry saw steady expansion in the first three quarters of the year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) showed.

The added value of textile firms with annual operating revenue of at least 20 million yuan (about $3.13 million) rose by 6.3 percent year-on-year, according to the MIIT.

The firms raked in 171.1 billion yuan worth of profits, surging by 31.7 percent from the same period last year. Their combined operating revenue expanded by 15.6 percent year-on-year to about 3.67 trillion yuan.

China's online retail sales of clothing products registered a year-on-year growth of 15.6 percent between January and September. Garment exports totaled 227.6 billion dollars during the period, up by 5.6 percent year-on-year.