Enterprises are the main body of innovation. Not long ago, the China Enterprise Confederation and the China Entrepreneur Association released lists of China's Top 500 Enterprises, Top 500 Manufacturing Enterprises, and Top 500 Service Enterprises at the 2024 China Top 500 Enterprises Summit Forum. From the list, it can be seen that large enterprises in China are currently showing rapid growth in research and development investment, continued improvement in patent quality, and continuous optimization of industrial structure in innovation. First, let's look at the investment. The top 500 companies will invest a total of 1813.7 billion yuan in research and development expenses in 2023, an increase of 235 billion yuan or 14.89% compared to the previous year; The average R&D investment per enterprise was 3.917 billion yuan, an increase of 9.41% over the previous year's 3.58 billion yuan; The proportion of total R&D investment to its total operating revenue was 1.90%, an increase of 0.05 percentage points from the previous year, the highest value since 2002, and the seventh consecutive year of increase. Let's take another look at the performance in terms of patents and standards. The total number of valid patents held by the top 500 enterprises in 2023 was 2.0297 million, an increase of 7.66% over the previous year, including 889600 invention patents, an increase of 19.67% over the previous year; A total of 75252 applications were submitted to participate in the formulation of standards, an increase of 142 applications compared to the previous year. The data of enterprises applying to participate in the formulation of standards has achieved 6 consecutive increases. In terms of participating in the formulation of international standards, enterprises have applied to participate in 5267 projects, an increase of 275 projects from the previous year. Among them, the communication equipment manufacturing, telecommunications services, and power grid industries are the top three, accounting for a total of 32.93%. The industrial structure is also continuously optimizing. The advanced manufacturing industry and the new generation information technology industry are growing rapidly, and their position in the top 500 is even more prominent. Among the top 500 companies, the number of advanced manufacturing enterprises such as new energy equipment manufacturing, power and energy storage batteries, communication equipment and computer manufacturing, semiconductor and panel manufacturing, and industrial machinery and equipment manufacturing has steadily increased. Enterprise revenue is an important reflection of operating conditions. According to the 2024 Top 500 Chinese Enterprises list, China's large enterprises are showing a trend of improving economic efficiency. ——The development of physical enterprises is accelerating and improving their efficiency. Among the top 500 enterprises, the operating revenue of physical enterprises (excluding real estate and financial enterprises) in 2023 was 91.85 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.31% compared to the previous year; The income profit margin and net asset profit margin of 482 non bank enterprises were 2.75% and 7.26%, respectively, an increase of 0.19 percentage points and 0.05 percentage points from the previous year. ——Manufacturing enterprises contribute significantly to the growth of operating income. The total operating revenue of the top 500 enterprises in 2023 was 110.07 trillion yuan, an increase of 1.71 trillion yuan or 1.58% compared to the previous year. Among them, 264 manufacturing enterprises achieved a total operating revenue of 45.22 trillion yuan, an increase of 0.89 trillion yuan or 2.01% compared to the previous year, contributing 52.19% to the overall growth, higher than the contribution of the service industry and other industries. World class enterprises are not only the foundation and support of a country's economic strength, but also a significant manifestation of its competitive influence. Looking at the development and growth of Chinese enterprises, it can be seen that the scale of Chinese enterprises has grown rapidly, and the entry threshold for the top 500 Chinese enterprises has been increasing year by year Zhu Hongren, Executive Vice President and Secretary General of the China Enterprise Confederation, also stated that at present, enterprises still face many difficulties and challenges in their transformation and development. Entrepreneurs should have firm confidence, face difficulties, accelerate the shaping of new development momentum and advantages, enhance their own strength and competitiveness, and strive to move towards world-class enterprises. (New Society)