Five of the top ten manufacturing companies are in the steel sector and two in the automobile sector. Legend Holdings Ltd and Haier Group Corporation are two electronic companies in the top ten list and their annual sales revenues last year both topped 12.55 billion US Dollars.

Less than half of China's top 500 manufacturing companies are state-owned, indicating that private entrepreneurs, shunned during the Soviet-style planned economy era, are thriving with the Communist giant becoming the "world's factory".

Only 220 of the top 500 manufacturing companies in China are state-owned, the National Bureau of Statistics said while noting that over 75 per cent of the top 500 are located in east China, with the highest number in Jiangsu province.

Five of the top ten manufacturing companies are in the steel sector and two in the automobile sector. Legend Holdings Ltd and Haier Group Corporation are two electronic companies in the top ten list and their annual sales revenues last year both topped 12.55 billion US Dollars.

The other three companies with sales revenues of over 100 billion Yuan last year are Baosteel, china first automobile group and Dongfeng Motor Co, Ltd.

The 500 companies are selected according to their sales revenues in 2005, NBS said.