Chinese Private Sector Records Explosive Growth
The Chinese private sector has grown more than 47 times
in the four years from 1989 to 2003, from a revenue base
of US$5.1 billion in 1989 to more than $241 billion in
mid-2003.
The newly released numbers came from a survey conducted
by the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce
and the United Front Work Department of the Central Committee
of the Chinese Communist Party.
The survey shows that for every 400 people in China,
there is one private company owner earning 200,000 yuan
(US$24,000) annually. By mid-2004, there were more than
3.44 million private companies employing more than 47.14
million persons.
Geographically, more than 63% of the businesses are
clustered in eight provinces and cities, including the
provinces of Jiangsu, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Shandong,
Beijing and Shanghai. Private enterprises are especially
strongly represented in Zhejiang province. In China,
the term "Zhejiang businessperson" has come
to mean "private business person". Within Zhejiang,
Wenzhou has become especially famous as a center of private
businesses.
As private businesses have become more popular, more
Chinese communist party members have become business
founders and entrepreneurs. The survey showed that 33.9%
of the business owners were Communist party members.
The work ethic of private business owners was much more
aggressive than those employed in state-owned enterprises
(SOEs), and most work more than 11.4 hours daily, with
some working up to 18 hours every day.
In spite of its rapid growth and increased protection
by the Chinese government, the private sector still feels
that it is discriminated against in taxation and in obtaining
loans to fuel growth. If these structural issues are
addressed, it is likely that the Chinese private sector
would grow even faster.
In the past year, the Chinese constitution has been
modified to guarantee private
property.
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