Overall, 172 Taiwanese companies made the list, a reduction of 40 percent from 289 last year, according to the survey, which was released yesterday.

Only one Taiwan firm, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., made the top ten. The world’s largest made-to-order chipmaker was ranked No. 10 on the list, which polls companies from mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Mainland-based Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) took the No. 1 spot in its debut on the list.

Besides ICBC, many Chinese financial institutions also garnered the top spots. These included Bank of China (No. 5), Bank of Communications (No. 11) and China Merchants Bank (No. 18). These banks have an average price/earnings ratio of 30, much higher than 13 for the multinational conglomerate HSBC.

“This indicates that Chinese financial institutions have become a force to be reckoned with on the international stage,” said Liang Yung-huang, publisher of Business Today.

However, Liang said ICBC’s stellar performance partly had to do with speculatory activities.

“Whether it can remain on the No. 1 spot in two or three years’ time is still something that remains to be seen,” he said.

Taiwan and Hong Kong companies are having a smaller presence on the list. Taiwan firms have reduced from 289 to 172, while Hong Kong firms have dropped from 348 to 300.

China, on the other hand, is having a stronger presence as 528 Chinese firms have made the list, an increase from last year’s 363.

In terms of market value, Taiwan firms on the list have a total market value of NT$17 trillion, a slight increase of 2.3 percent from last year. Hong Kong firms have a combined market value of NT$95 trillion, an increase of 74 percent, while that of Chinese firms totals NT$31 trillion, an increase of 79 percent.

“There are two reasons for the tremendous surge in Chinese firms’ market value,” Liang said. “First, there are more new companies being listed in China, and second, the share prices of older companies have gone up tremendously.”

He also pointed out the share prices of Taiwan stocks are rising at a slower pace than those of Hong Kong and Chinese stocks. Among the top 20 companies with fastest-growing stock prices, none of them are from Taiwan.

Yet of the top 20 companies with the highest earnings per share, three were from Taiwan, the survey pointed out.

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