China CSSC Holdings Ltd. the country's leading ship builder, announced Monday that net profits in 2009 shrank by 39.88 percent due to declining orders and prices hit by the global economic slowdown.

The Shanghai-based firm said in its 2009 annual report that its net profit fell to 2.5 billion yuan (366.2 million U.S. dollars).

Its annual business revenue dropped 8.74 percent to 25.2 billion yuan last year from 2008, according to the report.

Its A-share stock price gained 2.25 percent to 72.39 yuan per share on Monday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index advancing 2.09 percent to 3,123.8 points.