![A general view of Nelson Mandela Stadium during the 2022 CAF African Nations Championship Final football match between Algeria and Senegal in Algiers, Algeria, on Feb 4. [Photo/Agencies]](https://beijingtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/63fd61b0a31057c4b4b5e614.jpeg "63fd61b0a31057c4b4b5e614")
According to experts and business executives, China’s State-owned enterprises (SOEs) are expected to increase their revenue and expand their global market presence this year as the government encourages them to “go global.” In addition, SOEs are being asked to conduct technological research based on national strategic and industrial upgrading needs.
Liu Xingguo, a researcher at the China Enterprise Confederation in Beijing, stated that China’s optimized COVID-19 response and further opening-up measures will help SOEs secure international production deals and undertake more projects related to traditional and new infrastructure in overseas markets in 2023. This is especially true with economies involved in the Belt and Road Initiative and signatory countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement.
Despite the pandemic’s continued impact on global cross-border investment in the short to medium term, many Chinese SOEs, such as China Railway Construction Corp Ltd and Sinochem Holdings Corp, have already adjusted their investment strategies. They are counting on opportunities generated by multilateral and bilateral free-trade deals, as well as fast-growing business sectors, to ensure stable financial returns, said Liang Jun, president of the Guangdong Association of State-owned Capital.
After completing all the major tasks of its three-year plan for the reform of SOEs (2020-22), Chinese SOEs have become leaner and healthier. According to a statement released by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council in early February, their system supporting technological innovation has been improved, and supervision over State assets has become more professional, systematic, and law-based. In 2022, China’s centrally administrated SOEs saw their net profit rise by 35.71 percent to 1.9 trillion yuan ($272.8 billion), while operating revenues increased by 30.03 percent from 2020 to reach 39.4 trillion yuan.
The plan has led to all-out efforts and numerous breakthroughs in key areas, including optimizing the modern enterprise system and the market-oriented operation mechanism. In 2022, a total of 99 Chinese SOEs were included in the Fortune Global 500 List.
China Railway Construction Engineering Group plans to expand its construction activity this year, such as building real estate projects and rail networks in overseas markets, particularly in economies related to the Belt and Road Initiative. According to Mou Jinyou, chief engineer and vice-president of the company’s international business unit, Nelson Mandela Stadium in Baraki, Algeria, was completed by a subsidiary of Beijing-headquartered China Railway Group Ltd and was put into use in January. It served as a main venue for the first official soccer match of the 2022 African Nations Championship held in Algeria from Jan 13 to Feb 4, 2022. The stadium has an area of about 41 hectares and a total floor area of over 135,000 square meters, capable of holding up to 40,784 spectators. Additionally, a helicopter apron, an energy station with supporting facilities, and an outdoor park were built outside the stadium, and its outdoor parking lot can accommodate 2,185 cars and 305 buses.
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