Forty-four State-owned enterprises, including China National Petroleum Corporation, China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation, the State Grid Corporation of China and China National Offshore Oil Corporation, gained A ratings in the latest annual performance review by the State-owned assets watchdog.

The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission released results of its 2012 performance review on central SOEs on Sunday. Compared with good momentum in the petroleum industry, companies in the air transportation, shipping and steel sector reflected weak growth, according to SASAC.

Reasons for the business slowdowns of some central SOEs are complicated. Blind expansion without reasonable market estimation, industry downturns and management problems could all result in a slump in SOEs' business performance, SASAC said. It will continue to demand central SOEs focus on the core business sector and improve their resources allocation.