China to deal severely with SOEs that perform poorly: Xinhua

[SHANGHAI] China will evaluate the performance of its state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in 2014 and "severely deal with" companies that perform poorly, are continuously loss-making or do not meet safety standards, state news agency Xinhua said yesterday.

Beijing hopes to move towards a more efficient model for such enterprises where the state retains ownership but management is more focused on getting returns on investment than meeting policy goals.

The government is also seeking to alleviate entrenched industrial overcapacity aggravated by state firms over-investing.