State-owned enterprises (SOEs) directly under central government control turned in a sound performance last year despite the difficult international situation, Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo said on Tuesday in Beijing.
Speaking at an annual meeting of the Central Enterprise Work Committee of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Wu said these firms had contributed to the steady and healthy growth of the national economy and had withstood the tests at a time when the world economy slowed down.
The Central Enterprise Work Committee was created in 1999 to supervise the country's key SOEs that are crucial to the national economy and people's livelihoods.
Last year, 173 State-owned enterprises generated 186.7 billion yuan (US$22.5 billion) in profits, said Wu, also secretary of the committee.
A total of 64 industrial firms chalked up profits of 110.4 billion yuan(US$13.3 billion), representing 47 per cent of the entire profits realized by the country's State-owned and State-controlled enterprises.
Apart from economic achievements, these businesses have also effectively curbed corruption and resolved some of the deep-seated problems that sparked corruption, Wu said.
The vice-premier said the graft-busting drive will be strengthened this year in those SOEs directly under central government control.
Those SOEs should contribute to social stability by paying social insurance premiums for the employees, and helping workers when their enterprises merge or go bankrupt, he said.
Last year also saw a smooth transition from the previous system in which the central government sent inspectors to State-owned firms, Wu said
(China Daily January 30, 2002)
