"From the beginning of this year, (China's) state-owned enterprises have continued to maintain a sound development momentum and are expected to make more profits than in the last year," said Li in his opening remarks at a press conference held on the sidelines of the ongoing 16th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

From 1989 to 2001, the annual average tax revenues from each state-owned enterprise had surged to 7 million RMB yuan (US$942, 000) from 1 million yuan (US$121,000), the annual per capita labor productivity in state-owned enterprises to 54,772 yuan (US$6,599) from 9,115 yuan (US$1098), and the net value of fixed assets of all state-owned enterprises to 3. 9 trillion yuan (US$476 billion) from 703 billion yuan (US$84 billion), said Li.

In the past 13 years, while the total number of state-owned industrial enterprises had dwindled sharply from 102,300 to 46,800, the overall profits they made had increased to 238 billion yuan (US$28 billion) from a mere 74 billion yuan (US$8.9 billion), he added.

Describing the reform of state-owned enterprises as the "most difficult and most challenging central link" of the entire economic restructuring, Li said that this reform would be further deepened in China's pursuit of a new industrialization model with high technological content, good economic returns, low resources consumption, little pollution and efficient use of human resources.

"While continuing to enhance the competitiveness of the state sector, we will also support and guide the non-public sector for a better development in order to create a fine situation in which public and non-public sectors help each other for mutual development," he added.

Li will pick up questions on China's industrial restructuring, state-owned enterprises reform and market order regulation from foreign and Chinese journalists attending the press conference.

(Xinhua)

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