BEIJING — China will step up efforts to develop a group of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) with international dominance and influence, the chief of China’s top SOE watchdog said on April 21.

The goal includes having a group of leading SOEs that are dominant in international resources allocation, Xiao Yaqing, chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, said at a forum on the reform and development of Chinese enterprises.

China also aims to have a number of SOEs with leadership in global industry and technology development, and increase the number of SOEs with a say in global industry development, he said, calling the mission “more urgent” than before.

Chinese SOEs have significantly increased their scale, power, and competitiveness since the reform and opening-up which began 40 years ago, he said.

Official data showed total SOE assets stood at 163.6 trillion yuan ($26 trillion) at the end of February, and SOEs reported solid profit growth in the first two months of this year, raking in 367.3 billion yuan with a 25.3 percent year-on-year increase.

Three of the top five Fortune 500 Companies in 2017 were Chinese SOEs.

The country will deepen reform of SOEs and ramp up efforts to establish institutions and mechanisms that are in line with the market economy, Xiao added.

“SOEs should be more open and enhance exchanges and cooperation with private companies at home and abroad for win-win cooperation,” he said.