The total profits of the most profitable 500 Chinese companies reached about 4.43 trillion yuan in 2018, with a year-on-year growth rate of 11 percent, which was equivalent to 95 percent of the total profits (about 4.68 trillion yuan) of all listed companies on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, according to this year's China Business Top 100 Company List, or the CBT100 list, which has been released by the Shanghai-based Warton Economic Institute annually since 2001.

The top 500 companies' revenues in 2018 totalled more than 33.74 trillion yuan in 2018, increasing 16 percent year-on-year. Their revenues constituted approximately 37 percent of China's national GDP, which was 2 percentage points higher compared with that of 2017.

"It is evident that CBT100 companies are the most powerful driving forces that promote the economic development in China, as well as the backbones of the Chinese economy to counter against external risks," said Shen Hanyao, executive chairman of the CBT100 Company Forum and president of the Warton Economic Institute.

Among the top 500 companies for 2018, 69 companies were from West China, which demonstrated a continuous four-year growth of companies making to the list in the area, and companies from East China kept dominating the list as usual, with 358.

At the provincial and municipal level, Beijing continued to top the list with 74 companies, followed by Guangdong (70), Shanghai (56), Zhejiang (46), Jiangsu (39), and Shandong (24).

The top five industries with the most top 500 companies were real estate (55), finance (53, including 25 banks), chemicals (38), transportation (38), and medical and biotech (36).

Profits of the 53 financial companies on the list were more than 2.16 trillion yuan, accounting for 49 percent of the total profits of the top 500 companies, which made the finance industry the most profitable industry.

In addition to the main list of the 2019 CBT100 Company List, the Warton Economic Institute also released four sub-lists this year, which were respectively the 2019 CBT100 Company (Global) List, the 2019 CBT100 Company (Growth Enterprise Market) List, the 2019 CBT100 Company (National Equities Exchange and Quotations) List, and the 2019 CBT100 Company (Highest Growth Rate) List.

Followed by the release of the lists in Beijing on Friday, a forum on innovation and development strategies of Chinese listed companies was jointly held by the Organising Committee of the CBT100 Company Forum, the China International Council for the Promotion of Multinational Corporations, the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy, the China Association for the Promotion of Industrial Development, and the Warton Economic Institute.

The First Global Best Innovation 100 Competition, sponsored by the CBT100 Forum, Xishan district of Wuxi, and Xinjiang Zhongtai Group, and co-organized by China University S&T Achievements Transformation Center (East and South China) and the Association for Collaborative Leadership (ACL), will be kicked off in August, the organizers announced during the same event.