Country Garden moves up to the 177th position on the year 2019 list
KUALA LUMPUR: Country Garden’s strong performance has paid off for the property developer as it has not only remain on the Fortune Global 500 List but move up the rankings by 176 rungs to position 177 from 353.
Its inclusion in the list for the third consecutive year, since its first appearance in 2017, is a testament to fast improvements in its strength and size. The Chinese property developer recorded sales of 281.95bil yuan (RM168.89bil) for the first half of 2019, maintaining strong growth momentum.
In 2018, the company's contracted sales jumped 31.25% year-on-year to 501.88bil yuan, while revenue advanced 67.1% to 379.08bil yuan. Net profit clocked in at 48.54bil yuan, up 68.8%, while profit attributable to shareholders stood at 34.62bil yuan, up 32.8%.
With real estate, modern agriculture and robotics identified as three core businesses, the company announced new plans to become a comprehensive high-tech provider of lifestyle solutions for a better world catering to changing market demands and development trends.
Country Garden has also become one of the constituents of FTSE China 50 Index, Hang Seng China 25 Index and MSCI Global Standard Indices. The firm is included in the Hang Seng Composite Index, Hang Seng Mainland 100 and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index. Country Garden is rated 'BBB-' by Fitch, 'BB+' by S&P and 'Ba1' by Moody's (stable outlook).
Despite the downturn in the overall Chinese real estate market in the second half of last year and a series of policies put in place to put a brake on the market, Chinese property developers posted outstanding financial results.
Five Chinese real estate firms took their places on the list, unchanged year on year, with two companies among the top 200 for the first time. Country Garden (02007.HK) posted revenue of US$ 57.3087bil, representing a year-on-year rise of 70.7%.
Cumulatively, Chinese companies dominated the list, with 129 of them claiming a place, outnumbering their American counterparts (121 entries).
Sinopec, PetroChina and State Grid Corporation of China were the top three Chinese performers, demonstrating that despite a sluggish global economy, China has maintained stable growth, bolstered by the outstanding achievements of China-based firms.
