The private sector grew nearly 50% between 2001 and 2004 due to privatization of state owned enterprises, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a survey by the National Bureau of Statistics. The survey found the number of private mainland companies increased by 658,000 to 1.982 million from 2001 until the end of last year. The number of state-backed companies plunged 47.9% to 192,000 at the end of last year, from 369,000 in 2001. Similarly, the number of collectively owned companies also fell to 456,000 from 858,000 in 2001.