Are China’s state-owned giants about to get even bigger? Party journal flags ‘a matter of survival’
- At a time when China is facing unprecedented economic challenges, state-owned enterprises are called ‘the lifeline of the national economy’ in prominent party journal
- But further reform is called for among state firms, with the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission flagging a lack of competitiveness
State-owned enterprises must take the lead in ensuring that geopolitical complications and supply-chain upheavals do not stifle China’s hi-tech aspirations in the coming years, according to newly outlined priorities.
“Self-reliance in science and technology is not only a matter of development, but also a matter of survival,” the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) said in an article published on Sunday in Qiushi, the Communist Party’s most authoritative theoretical journal.
“Most state-owned enterprises are in important industries and in key areas related to national security, and they are the lifeline of the national economy,” the commission said. “They are key variables in realising national strategic intentions and responding to changes in the external environment and to major risks and challenges.”
It also said that some SOEs remain “big but not strong”, with problems such as insufficient innovation and low return on assets, and this justifies further reform to increase their competitiveness.
“We must continue to deepen reforms, play better roles in strategic security, industrial leadership, national economy and public services, and respond to the uncertainty of the external environment with our own high-quality development,” it added.