21st Century Business Herald:
Central SOEs' profits have enjoyed rapid growth in the first half of 2017. As a matter of fact, their profits have registered stable growth for over eight consecutive months since last year. Does SASAC take this momentum as a sign that China's economy has achieved its L-shaped recovery? If so, will management policies for central SOEs be changed? In addition, out of the 102 central SOEs, a total of 99 gained profits, while the other three suffered losses. Did their losses become increasingly heavy? If so, can the losses be reduced via M&A, or will the three file for bankruptcy? Thank you.
Shen Ying:
Despite different opinions about China's general economic trend, we can be assured that the momentum of making progress while maintaining stability will be consolidated. The central SOEs, as stabilizers of the economy, can help strengthen the momentum by deepening reform and improving management. Opinions differ about China's growth trajectory: some say it is L-shaped, while others hold that it is U-shaped or V-shaped. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has declared that China's economy is stepping into new normal, developing major economic policies including supply-side structural reform. It shows that we have found the measures that can achieve sound and sustained economic development. As long as we intensify our efforts to implement those measures and make steady progress to solve problems, we believe that the good momentum for growth will be consolidated.
As you have mentioned, we have a total of 99 SOEs under central government that made profits, while there were three who recorded minor loss. There is a mixture of being in an initial investment period, or of suffering temporary losses. At a time when Chinese economy is showing positive signals, SASAC will continue to focus on building world-class enterprises, and push forward supply-side structural reform, especially on structural adjustment, transformation and upgrading, in order to enhance core competitiveness. Meanwhile, according to the needs for marketization and globalization, the building of a modern enterprise system will be speeded up, especially in regard to corporate governance. Through the reform and optimization of the system, enterprises will be given fresh impetus and possess the ability for sustainable development, making more contributions for national economy to maintain a sustained, rapid and sound development.
Xi Yanchun:
As for China's general economic trend, there will be a series of press conferences in July by different departments from multiple aspects. Please look out for our further notices. Thanks for the introduction by Shen Ying, and thank you all. This is the end of the press conference. If there are any other questions, reporters could contact the Press Office of SASAC. Thanks.