Konka Group Co. Ltd, one of China's major TV and cell phone makers, posted net profit of 42.5 million yuan in the first half of 2007, up 42.89 percent over the same period last year.

During the period, Konka's sales revenues reached 5.61 billion yuan, an increase of 0.76 percent, according to the Konka interim report.

Given the creeping sales revenues, the profit surge benefits from cost reduction and increasing profit on the cell phones sector, said the report.

Konka, grappling with throat-cutting price wars in TV and cell phone sectors, decided to produce white appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines.

In early August, the Shenzhen-based corporation invested 80 million yuan in the White Appliances Industrial Park located in Chuzhou of China's eastern Anhui Province and plans to make white appliances its third major sector after color TV sets and mobile phones.

The new factory can produce 400,000 refrigerators annually, which will boost Konka's production capacity of white appliances to one million units per year, said Konka vice president He Jianjun

The corporation plans to have four refrigerator production lines and two washing machine production lines by 2010, which will make Konka one of the largest white appliances makers in China with annual production capacity of 2.8 million units.

Konka expects its sales of white appliances to double in the Middle East, South Asia and Africa in two years, He said.

Established in 1980, Konka was China's first Sino-foreign joint venture producing consumer electronics. (One U.S. dollar is equal to 7.57 yuan)