On June 23, the Warton Economic Institute released the "The list of CBT 500 Listed Companies in 2021" in Shanghai, with a total of 500 companies on the list. This is the 21st consecutive year that the Warton Economic Institute has compiled and released the "The List of CBT 500 Listed Companies " since 2001.

The ranking of the top 500 Chinese listed companies is based on the total profit, and evaluates the development performance of Chinese listed companies in the past year according to the corporate development concept of "strengthening and expanding". All the listed companies are the most competitive and profitable companies. The lowest line on the list this year is the total profit of 1.373 billion yuan in 2020.

On the “ List of CBT 500 Listed Companies in 2021”, ICBC has topped the list for 12 consecutive years with a total profit of 392.126 billion yuan, followed by China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank, Bank of China, Ping An, China Merchants Bank, China Construction, Bank of Communications, Vanke and Industrial Bank ranked second to tenth, and Watson Bio ranked 500th.

Figure 1: Tian Xiaohong, Secretary General of China Top 100 Forum, Interpretation of the List

At the press conference, the CBT 100 China Research Group of the Warton Economic Institute analyzed and interpreted the "List of CBT 500 Listed Companies in 2021":

1. The strength of the top 500 companies has reached a new level, and the role of the main force has become more prominent

The total profit of the 500 listed companies exceeded the 5 trillion mark for the first time, reaching 5,074.254 billion yuan, an increase of 3.38%, accounting for 95.07% of the total profit of all listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchange. The operating income was 39,192.61 billion yuan, an increase of 2.80%, accounting for 73.78% of the operating income of all listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchange. The proportion of total profit and operating income to the national GDP was 5% and 39%, up 0.04% and 0.10% respectively over the previous year. It can be seen from the absolute number, proportion and proportion to GDP that the top 500 enterprises are the well-deserved mainstay of China's economic development.

2. The competition for the rankings of companies is fierce, and the star enterprises have dazzling achievements

Among the 500 companies on the list, there are 93 new companies on the list. Arowana (93), CICC (96) and Inke Medical (98) entered the top 100, SMIC international, Shengxiang biology, Dongfang biology, stone technology and Trina Solar are five new top 500 enterprises in the scientific innovation board. The ranking of the top ten changed more than in previous years, achieving "two in and two outs". Vanke improved two places and entered the top ten for the first time, Industrial Bank entered the top ten again after four years, and PetroChina and Sinopec dropped out of the top ten. CSCEC jumped from 10th to 7th, ranking first among real economy enterprises. China Railway Construction has been listed on the "List of China's Most Growing Listed Companies" for six consecutive years with a profit of 30 billion yuan, and has achieved sustained, steady and high-speed growth, which deserves special appreciation.

3. The real estate industry is showing a downward trend, and the pharmaceutical biology is growing rapidly

In the industry structure, the real estate industry (39 companies) fell to the first place for the first time since 2016, and the non-bank financial industry (46 companies) jumped to the first place in the industry. With the intensive introduction of control policies such as "Three Red Lines" and "Two Concentrations", more uncompetitive real estate enterprises will withdraw from the top 500 list in the future. The number of pharmaceutical and biological (45), public utilities (36) and banks (34) companies on the list also exceeds 30. Affected by the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the number of transportation companies (27 companies) on the list decreased the most, with a decrease of 15 companies, dropping out of the top five in the industry for the first time. The number of pharmaceutical and biological companies on the list increased the most, with an increase of 11.

4. The financial industry accounts for half of the profits, and its future positioning deserves attention

Among the 500 companies on the list, the number of companies in the financial industry (including non-bank financial and banking companies) continued to increase, from 72 in the previous year to 80, with a total profit of 2,598.941 billion yuan, accounting for 51.22% of the total profits of top 500 enterprises. The number of listed companies in the financial industry continues to increase, and the proportion of profits has remained above 50% for a long time. Whether there is an issue of excessive development and aggravating the burden on the real economy is worthy of in-depth discussion. The problem of how to give full play to the strong strength of the financial industry, guide the financial industry to better serve the real economy, and support the continuous growth of real enterprises is an important issue faced by macro decision-making departments and the financial industry.

5. Guangdong has returned to the top of the list, Zhejiang has surpassed Shanghai for the first time, and Beijing is still the main profit driver

Guangdong surpassed Beijing (69) with 76, and once again topped the list after five years. Zhejiang (55) surpassed Shanghai (48) for the first time, occupying the third place. Jiangsu (43) ranked fifth. The 69 listed companies in Beijing have created a total profit of 2,259.350 billion yuan, accounting for 44.53% of the total profit of the top 500 companies. They are the absolute main force of the top 500 companies. However, during the five-year period from 2017 to 2021, the number of companies on the list in Beijing continued to decrease, from a peak of 80 to 69, a decrease of 11. Relevant departments should pay special attention to this.

At the press conference, the WEI also released four other sub-lists. A total of 500 companies are listed in the "2021 CBT 500 (Global)  Listed Companies", and the lowest line on the list is the total profit of 2.603 billion yuan in 2020. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China continued to occupy the top spot, while China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, Ping An, Tencent Holdings, China Mobile, TSMC, China Merchants Bank, and China Construction ranked second to tenth.

At the press conference, the WEI also released four other sub-lists:

A total of 500 companies are listed in the "2021 CBT 500 (Global) Listed Companies Ranking Edition", and the lowest line on the list is 2.603 billion yuan in total profit in 2020. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China continued to occupy the top spot, and Inke Medical, Wen's shares, Mindray Medical, and Ningde Times ranked second to fifth.

A total of 100 companies are listed on the "CBT 100 (GEM) Listed Companies in 2021". Arowana topped the list with a total profit of 8.946 billion yuan, followed by Inke Medical, Wen's Shares, Mindray Medical, and CATL.

A total of 100 companies are listed on the "CBT 100 Companies Listed on New Third Board in 2021". Yongan Futures and China Investment Insurance are among the best.

The "2021 List of China's Most Growing Listed Companies" selects listed companies with a total profit of more than 100 million yuan in Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets for three consecutive years and a growth rate of more than double digits (10%). Sorted by growth rate, a total of 280 companies are on the list.

Figure 2: Shen Hanyao, Chairman of the Top 100 Forum and President of the Warton Economic Research Institute, delivered a speech

Figure 3: Zhao Dengshan, representative of the top 100 enterprises and secretary of the board of directors of China Railway Construction, delivered a speech

Figure 4: Shen Bing, Assistant Dean of the Warton Economic Research Institute, released the preparations for the 21st China Top 100 Listed Companies Summit Forum

The press conference announced that the 21st China Business Top 100 Listed Companies Summit Forum and the 7th China Top 100 Cities Comprehensive Development Forum will be held in Shanghai on November 19-20. The theme is to organize the leaders of the top 500 enterprises and the leaders of the top 100 cities to focus on the strategic connection between the top 500 enterprises and the city clusters in China, to jointly create a new pattern of China's economic development and achieve high-quality development of the national economy. The forum will also honor the top 500 companies and outstanding entrepreneurs in the 2021 list.