Industry-leading execution has helped China Mengniu Dairy, China Overseas Land and Investment, China Telecom, Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China and Zhaojin Mining attain a place in this category. Each company has been adept at forging business strategies which differentiates them from their peers, ensuring the kind of sustainable advantage which has seen them through changing market conditions.

China Mengniu Dairy 

China Mengniu Dairy features as the most purchased dairy brand in a recent Credit Suisse/AC Nielsen survey of 2,600 consumers in China, claiming a 31.1% share (3.4 percentage points ahead of its closest rival, a bigger gap the 2.5 and 2 percentage points seen in 2010 and 2011). The survey found that consumers' intention to purchase dairy products rebounded last year, after declining in the wake of the September 2008 melamine scandal. China's dairy sales grew at a compound annual growth rate of 26.7% between 2003-2007 and 19% between 2009-2010 in the aftermath of the scandal.

Analysts expect Mengniu - which suffered a food safety scandal in December 2011 - to be able to differentiate itself from other dairy producers following improvements in practices. "We are confident Mengniu is a turnaround story that will drive profits. The new management convinces through execution and a very concrete and detailed business plan," says Nomura analyst Emma Liu. In 2012, the company's board appointed a 19-year veteran from COFCO, Sun Yiping, as its new president.

The company is leading the industry in boosting its own supplies of raw milk. Credit Suisse's Kevin Yin notes that Mengniu has budgeted 3 billion to 3.5 billion yuan to build up to ten mega farms over the next three to five years. Implementation will be supported by Denmark's Arla Foods, which bought a 5.9% stake in the company in June 2012. It plans to add value to milk produced by using supplies as a raw material for added value dairy products, such as yoghurt and ice cream as well as milk powder. There is plenty of potential: China's per capita dairy consumption is a third the level seen in Korea and less than a fifth Australia's.

China Overseas Land and Investment (COLI)

China's economic slowdown has focussed fund manager attention on asset-light property developers, which have adopted a model of quickly developing and then selling property rather than holding inventory on their balance sheets. The strategy has, however, left many developers needing to replenish landbanks in 2012.

In contrast, China Overseas Land and Investment (COLI), as the most highly rated property developer by credit rating agencies (alongside China Resources Land), has continued to build its landbank and is well positioned to benefit from consolidation within the industry, as small and medium-size developers continue to face difficulty. COLI's landbank is focussed on core residential and commercial locations in first and second tier cities helping to ensure consistent annual net growth in the region of 20% per annum.

COLI achieved a 28.1% year-on-year increase in total property sales in 2012, to HK$111.5 billion (US$14.3 billion) with a 30.6% year-on-year increase in gross floor area sold to 7.3 million square metres. In December 2012 alone, it acquired ten new projects in Wuhan, Hangzhou, Xiamen, Suzhou, Qingdao, Foshan and Ningbo.

Amid a weaker market environment COLI took advantage of its strong balance sheet and diversified funding sources. In November 2011, for example, COLI became the first Chinese property developer to issue 30-year bonds, receiving US$7 billion in orders for a US$300 million 30-year bond tranche. In February 9 2012, the company reopened the US dollar bond market with a US$500 million offering and launched a convertible bond offering in March. Despite active participation in the capital markets, COLI has maintained a healthy net gearing ratio below 40%.

In adjusting the pace of construction activity according to the market environment, COLI benefits from the expertise of its parent company, China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) - the country's largest and the world's third largest construction company. In addition, the company has further strengthened joint venture cooperation. Its strong market position has left little doubt in the minds of property buyers - and potential business partners - about its ability to complete projects.

China Telecom 

China Telecom is recognized for its consistently strong strategy execution. A foundation of stable fixed-line cash flows has provided a base for its aggressive mobile expansion, marked by last year's iPhone launch, and a low funding cost rooted in the company being one of the highest rated credits in China. Last year, China Telecom acquired the CDMA network of its unlisted parent company lending it the title of world's largest CDMA mobile operator to add to its title as the world's largest broadband operator. In January 2013, the company announced it had completed the acquisition.

A relatively low base of mobile subscribers lends room to higher earnings growth for several years to come. Rapid growth provides room to focus on acquiring high-end subscribers, lured by the company's stable network quality and industry leading service levels. An upscale customer base equates to a greater focus on fine-tuning content and applications for this audience.

Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China

Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China has long been widely regarded as one of the best managed financial services companies in China with its three pillars of insurance, banking and investment providing a sustainable growth platform. A long-standing focus on industry leading corporate governance standards has contributed to enviable profit margins.

The company has witnessed some notable changes over the past year, with Xiao Suining and Richard Jackson resigning from their positions as Ping An Bank chairman and president in September 2012 following the completion of the merger between the original Ping An Bank and Shenzhen Development Bank earlier in the year. The promotion of the vice-chairman of Ping An Insurance, Sun Jianyi , to chairman of Ping An Bank reflects the ongoing strategy of building an integrated financial services platform with the model of "one customer, one account, multiple products and one-stop services" and promoting cross-selling across the group.

Liberalization of regulations restricting the type of investments which insurance companies can make promises to further spur integration, with an increasing allocation to equity helping to build up investment capabilities and exploit synergies between fixed income and equity investment.

The group has bolstered its capital, with Ping An Life raising 9 billion yuan with a ten-year subordinated debt issue last year, for example. Rapid expansion in recent years had led to a lowering in the solvency ratio.

On February 1, the group acquired a new shareholder, with the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), granting approval for HSBC's sale of its 15.57% stake in the company to Thailand's Charoen Pokphand Group  for US$9.39 billion.