A survey of China's top companies in 2002 has highlighted the extent to which the state sector still overwhelmingly dominates the economy.
The survey, based on economic data provided by Chinese authorities and published yesterday by the Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER), found no private companies in the top 37 ranked by operating income.
“China's (companies) are assessed here on the basis of operating income (for 2000) rather than market capitalisation because of the opaque shareholding structure of many Chinese firms,” the magazine said. “But the leading companies chosen by the FEER in this debut listing of China's top firms suggest private business has some way to go before it gains parity with the state-owned giants that have dominated the nation for decades.”