Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn. Benjamin Franklin

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Reforming China’s State-Owned Enterprises

By Eve Cary

The Diplomat - June 19, 2013

Although it faces strong resistance, reforms will be vital if the Chinese economy is to continue to evolve.

China’s huge apparatus of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) is a popular punching bag: economists decry its inefficiencies; foreign politicians complain about unfair competition; and many Chinese citizens criticize public displays of waste, like elaborate banquets. The Chinese government would counter that they provide a foundation for the economy as a whole.

As China’s economy evolves (and it does, albeit slowly at times), the clamor for SOE reform grows louder from all sides. What is the potential for reform? How damaging are SOEs to the Chinese economy? On the flip side, how have SOEs strengthened the system?

But first, a little background. According to Xinhua, at the end of 2011, there were 144,700 state-owned enterprises with total assets of 85.4 trillion yuan, revenues of 39.25 trillion yuan, and profits of 2.6 trillion yuan (43 percent of China’s total industrial and business profit).

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