Nation's most competitive firms listed By Jiang Zhuqing (China Daily) Updated: 2004-09-27 14:23
The nation's premier petrochemical corporation, the China Petroleum and
Chemical Corp (Sinopec Corp), was ranked the most competitive of China's top
1,000 publicly listed companies.
A Report on the Competitiveness of Chinese Enterprises was put together by
the Global Competitive Organization (GCO) and the Appraisal Centre of China News
Service (CNS). It was released September 26 at the Second China Competitiveness
Conference.
It is the second time that the GCO appraises Chinese enterprises and their
level of competitiveness, said Sun Zhiguo, an official with the organization's
China office.
"After China's entry into the World Trade Organization, its economic circles
and enterprises are encouraged to recognize their competitiveness with their
foreign counterparts."
Aside from the ranking of listed companies, the top 500 medium and small
enterprises were also named.
They range widely from the chemical industry, pharmacy, building materials,
food, and metallurgy to electronics, automobile and energy.
According to the ranking, the number of employees in the 500 top firms
increased to 325,000 in 2003 from 278,000 a year ago, proving that medium and
small enterprises have become a major force in resolving employment and
maintaining social stability.
When analyzing its distribution, the enterprises mainly cluster in areas of
strong competitiveness, such as Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Guangdong provinces and
Shanghai in eastern China.
A great gap in competition still exists between China's eastern and western
regions, reports said.
At the same time, a strong momentum in places such as Chongqing, Sichuan and
Shanxi provinces is sharpening their competitive edge.
Medium and small enterprises are the nation's most active and competitive
groups, said Guo Zhaojin, head of CNS, one of the two major news agencies in
China. They are playing an increasing role in maintaining economic growth and
alleviating the pressure of job creation.
