The net profits of South Korea's top 500 companies increased 10.8 percent last year, data showed Wednesday, a sign of their belt-tightening and more efficient management amid economic difficulties.

The combined net profits of the 500 companies stood at 96.6 trillion won ($81 billion) last year, up 10.8 percent from a year earlier, according to CEOScore, a website that tracks conglomerates, financial firms and state-run companies.

The operating profits of those companies jumped 13.6 percent to 142.6 trillion won from a year earlier, the data showed.

Still, the combined sales of the 500 companies came to 2,468.6 trillion won, down 2.3 percent from a year ago.

The website also said in a report that the net profits generated by affiliates of the country's top 30 conglomerates accounted for 61.3 percent of the total net profits of the top 500 companies, down 2.4 percentage points from a year ago.

The operating profits of affiliates of the country's top 30 conglomerates accounted for 58.8 percent of the combined operating profits of the top 500 companies, also down 2.5 percentage points from a year ago, the data showed. (Yonhap)