China's female-led firms valued at 2 trln yuan in A-share market

BEIJING - Women are having more say in China's business world as females at helm of A-share listed firms have become more visible.

As of March 7, the day before International Women's Day, a total of 174 A-share listed companies run by female chairpersons posted 2.12 trillion yuan ($335.2 billion) in aggregate market value, according to data from Securities Times.

With 65 listed in the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the rest in Shenzhen, the companies accounted for only 4.98 percent of the country's total domestically-listed companies.

Female executives are showing strong leadership skills, as Dong Mingzhu, chairperson of Gree Electric, topped the Forbes China's annual ranking of China's most successful businesswomen in 2017.

Among 43 A-share listed firms with their market value exceeding 10 billion yuan, Gree Electric has a latest market value of 311.1 billion yuan, second largest in the home appliances sector.

Song Guangju, chairperson of Poly Real Estate with market value of 182.7 billion yuan, has increased its annual profits from 660 million yuan to 15.7 billion yuan since she took the position.

Some 66 women own stakes of over 100 million yuan, with He Qiaonv, who chairs Beijing Orient Landscape, holding 21.55 billion yuan in market value based on the latest share price.

Most of these companies specialize in manufacturing, especially the sectors of chemical and mechanical equipment. Companies in the financial and extractive industries have fewer chairwomen.

All eight female-led companies that have released their 2017 annual reports are profitable.

Another 86 companies are expected to post a rise in their net profits in 2017, but their annual reports are yet to be released.