A list of Chinese companies paying the highest taxes in the nation shows that the state-owned companies are still the biggest taxpayers in China.

It also reveals an imbalance between different geographical regions.

According to a ranking released Saturday by the State Administration of Taxation and China Taxation Magazine, companies in eastern China pay the most taxes.

Of 2007's top 500 tax-paying companies, 359 are located in the highly developed east.

Only 83 are headquartered in central China and 58 come from the west. These areas have fewer companies and are less developed.

Analysis of the list showed state-owned enterprises paid the most taxes in China. Three hundred and five state-owned companies made the list. They paid 89.75 percent of the total taxes collected by the top ranked 500 companies.

By industry, manufacturing enterprises contributed the most taxes, specifically chemical companies. China National Petroleum Corporation and China Petrochemical Corporation took the top two positions on the list.

"Major taxation contributors still concentrated in heavy chemical industries such as oil and coal, which suggested that China's economic development relies too much on manufacturing and resource consumption," said Zhang Musheng, head of the China Taxation Magazine.

Despite rapid growth of the national economy, China is still weak in service and technology-oriented industries, said Zhang.

(Xinhua News Agency October 12, 2008)