China's economic boom is masking balance sheet problems in China's largest companies, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing a report by Citigroup and Moody's Investors Service Inc that compares 686 of China's largest listed companies with nearly 5,000 other publicly traded companies throughout the world. The report found the average big Chinese company is behind global standards in developing a sound financial structure that allows flexibility in the event of major cyclical changes. The study also enumerated the financial risks faced by large Chinese companies such as relying too heavily on short-term bank loans. Nearly every dollar of profit earned by Chinese companies has been offset by new loans for investment, and only 13 Chinese companies have obtained an internationally recognized credit rating. The report also stated that the size of China's stock market, relative to gross domestic product, ranks behind that of every major economy, and the corporate-bond market is essentially nonexistent.
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