Chinese banks took almost a third of total global bank profits last year, up from 4 percent in 2007, as they grabbed market share given up by struggling European peers, The Banker magazine, based in the UK, said in its latest annual bank ranking list.

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China topped the list as the most profitable bank for the second successive year, with pre-tax earnings of $43.2 billion, according to The Banker.

China Construction Bank followed, with a $34.8 billion profit. Bank of China came third, with earnings of $26.8 billion.

"While European banks count the cost of the eurozone sovereign debt crisis, China is leading the emerging markets into a new era of banking dominance. But the established markets of the US and Japan should not be forgotten," said The Banker.

Banking is one of the most profitable sectors in China. The 16 public lenders raked in 272.6 billion yuan in the first quarter of the year, more than half of the profit of all the public companies combined.

xieyu@chinadaily.com.cn