Profits of China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) jumped 46.7 percent to 1.26 trillion yuan (186.6 billion U.S.dollars) from a year ago in the first eight months of this year, the Ministry of Finance said?in Beijing?Sunday.

In August, combined profits of Chinese SOEs grew 6.8 percent month on month, the ministry said in a statement on its website.

Business revenue totaled 19.4 trillion yuan in the period, up 37.6 percent from a year earlier. The figure for August alone was 4 percent higher than the July level.

Most of the major sectors, except the tobacco industry, posted year-on-year profit growth in the first eight months.

For August, profits for power generation, petrochemicals, oil, non-ferrous metals and coal industries were higher than the July level, said the ministry.

However, machinery, iron and steel, commercial and trade, construction and real estate, and auto sectors saw profits decline month on month, the ministry said without giving reasons.

China's SOEs include SOEs directly controlled by the central government and SOEs supervised by local governments, but exclude state-owned financial enterprises.