China Petroleum and Chemical Corp (Sinopec) recently employed Standard & Poor's, a leading provider of independent investment research, indices and ratings, to appraise the performance of its internal management.
Sinopec is the first among the country's 1,000-strong listed companies to hire an international rating company, and the firm received 58 positive comments, 21 negative ones, 22 neutral or undetermined ones in its evaluation.
Sinopec, one of the world's top 500 companies, wants to pinpoint its problems with the international rating company, in an effort to carry out its long-term strategy, according to company sources on February 19.
In recent years, a series of scandals involving some listed firms occurred in China, creating greater awareness about investment risks among domestic and overseas investors.
International rating companies may have to develop a special methodology for them to evaluate Chinese firms, by taking "China factors" into account, said Zhou Qinye, deputy general manager of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.