BEIJING — China's paper-making industry reported revenue growth in the first quarter of this year (Q1), data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.

The combined operating revenue of enterprises with annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan ($2.95 million) rose 4.5 percent year-on-year to 357.1 billion yuan, according to the ministry.

These firms raked in total profits of 12.56 billion yuan, down 49.3 percent from a year ago.

In the January-March period, China's paper output increased by 2.4 percent year-on-year to 33.4 million tons, the data showed.