A SENIOR minister says state enterprises have made ''progress'' in their management, including cutting down losses.
Speaking at a major economic conference recently, the Minister at the State Economic and Trade Commission, Wang Zhongyu, denied reports in the official media that 45 per cent of government-owned firms were in the red.
China economists said Mr Wang's remarks, quoted by the semi-official China News Service yesterday, were part of a concerted effort by the State Council to improve the image of state-held business units.
''China's state enterprises experienced a new phenomenon in the first quarter of the year,'' Mr Wang said.
''If we analyse the situation with a practical mind, we will discover that these enterprises are developing in the right direction.'' The minister turned to reports in the official media that losses incurred by state enterprises in the first quarter had increased by nearly 80 per cent and that 45 per cent of all state firms were losing money.
''This is a misunderstanding,'' said Mr Wang, generally regarded as a protege of Executive Vice-Premier Zhu Rongji.
