The "2024 Wenzhou Top 100 Enterprises" list was released recently, along with the "Top 50 Manufacturing Enterprises" and "Top 30 Service Industry Enterprises" lists, by the Wenzhou Municipal Enterprise Federation, Wenzhou Municipal Entrepreneurs Association, and Wenzhou Federation of Industrial Economics. It is learned that this is the 20th consecutive year that the "Wenzhou Top 100 Enterprises" list has been released. The top 100 enterprises are an important support for local economic and social development, and their current status and development trends are also important references for local governments to formulate relevant policies.

The list is based on sales revenue or operating revenue (hereinafter referred to as sales revenue) in Wenzhou in 2023. According to statistics, the threshold for entering the 2024 Wenzhou Top 100 Enterprises list is achieving sales revenue of RMB 932.19 million in Wenzhou throughout the previous year, representing a year-on-year(YoY) increase of 19.96% compared to RMB 781.56 million in 2022, demonstrating a trend of "the strong becoming stronger."

The "Top 100 Enterprises" include 77 private, 12 state-owned, and 11 collectively owned joint-stock (mixed ownership) ones. The total sales revenue of the 100 enterprises in 2023 was RMB 431.54184 billion, representing a YoY increase of 6.54%, accounting for 49.43% of Wenzhou's GDP in 2023; they achieved profits of RMB 26.73718 billion, up 2.16% YoY; the total assets of them amounted to RMB 1,730.22572 trillion, up 11.69% YoY; R&D expenses totaled RMB 8.28618 billion, up 6.66% YoY; and total taxes paid  RMB 16.44718 billion, accounting for 16.03% of Wenzhou's fiscal revenue in 2023. Seven enterprises achieved sales revenue exceeding RMB 10 billion, one more than the previous year. They are Chint Group with RMB 57.25081 billion, Semir Group with RMB 40.7925 billion, Vanyang Group with RMB 35.8832 billion, Huafeng Group with RMB 20.84621 billion, Rept Battero with RMB 13.74891 billion, Blooms Group with RMB 12.02583 billion, and Delixi with RMB 10.29533 billion.

In term of region, 25 enterprises are from Longwan district (including 11 from the former economic and technological development area), 20 from Lucheng district , 13 from Rui’an city, 10 from Yueqing city, 8 at municipal level, 8 from Ouhai district, 5 from Yongjia county, 4 from Pingyang county, 2 from Cangnan and Taishun counties each, and 1 from Wencheng county, Dongtou district, and Wenzhou Marine Economic Development Demonstration Zone each.

The list reveals the following characteristics of Wenzhou's economy: the private economy undeniably plays a dominant role. As of the end of 2023, the number of enterprise in Wenzhou exceeded 1.4 million, with private enterprises accounting for over 90%. Among the top 100 enterprises, 77 private  ones account for 84.35%, 73.20%, and 76.48% of the total sales, net profit, and tax revenue of the comprehensive top 100 enterprises in 2023, respectively, and they provide employment for 91.29% of the workforce.

The manufacturing industry remains a solid cornerstone role. Among the top 100 enterprises, 50 are from the manufacturing sector. With sales revenue of RMB 246.04464 billion, total profits of RMB 11.84622 billion, and taxes paid of RMB 8.77569 billion, they account for 57.02%, 44.31%, and 53.26% of the total amounts respectively. Within the manufacturing industry, traditional industries have demonstrated remarkable resilience. The five major traditional industries of electrical appliances, apparel, chemicals, automobile and motorcycle parts, and footwear and leather goods include 34 enterprises in the top 100 list. In 2023, these industries achieved sales of RMB 191.91964 billion, accounting for 78% of the total sales of the 50 manufacturing enterprises; they realized profits of RMB 11.39499 billion, accounting for 96.19%; and paid taxes of RMB 7.40147 billion, accounting for 84.34%. Comprehensive evaluations indicate that the digital economy and smart development have had a positive impact on the transformation of traditional industries, enabling Wenzhou's traditional industries to gradually enter a new area.

Research and development （R&D） investment drives technological progress. In 2023, the top 100 enterprises invested a total of RMB 8.28618 billion in R&D, an increase of 517.51 million compared to the previous year. Among them, 50 manufacturing enterprises invested RMB 7.19696 billion, up by  404.23 million year-on-year. Additionally, 35 service enterprises invested RMB 672.21 million in R&D, marking an increase of 223.04 million from the previous year. The top 100 enterprises hold a total of 19,565 patents, including 18,566 from the manufacturing sector, accounting for 94.89% of the total; 488 from the service sector, and 513 from the construction industry. Of these patents, 3,178 are invention patents, with 2,960 from the manufacturing sector, which accounts for 93.48% of the total; 59 from the service sector, and 159 from the construction industry.

It is learned from the chairman of the Wenzhou Municipal Enterprise Federation that the sales revenue of the enterprises on the list is only calculated based on the statistical standards within the Wenzhou region, which aligns with the local reality but fails to fully demonstrate the overall operating scale of Wenzhou enterprises nationwide. For example, Tsingshan Holding Group and Doof International Holding Group Co.,Ltd, two Wenzhou-based enterprises, achieved sales revenues of RMB 382.137 billion and RMB 185.61437 billion respectively in 2023. However, since their sales revenues mainly originated from outside the region, they are not included in the list of the top 100 enterprises in Wenzhou. Additionally, enterprises such as Chint Group, Delixi Group, Huafeng Group,Vanyang Group, and Semir Group have all made the list of the top 100 enterprises in Zhejiang Province in 2023, with their total sales revenues outside Wenzhou significantly exceeding those within.