The combined operating income of the top-earning 500 Chinese companies have exceeded 100 trillion yuan for the first time, according to the latest list released by the China Enterprise Confederation (CEC) on Tuesday.

The CEC, the officially-designated national employers' organization, has been jointly compiling the list with the China Enterprise Directors Association for the 21st consecutive year.

The total operating income of the top 500 Chinese enterprises reached 102.48 trillion yuan ($14.8 trillion) in 2021, rising 14.08 percent over the previous year. The combined total assets jumped 8.43 percent year on year to 372.53 trillion yuan.

In the same year, the number of enterprises with an operating income exceeding 100 billion yuan increased to 244. That is 22 more than the previous year, and 12 enterprises joined the trillion-yuan club in terms of operating income.

State Grid Corporation of China, PetroChina and Sinopec ranked top three, each with an operating income exceeding 2.5 trillion yuan last year.

The operating income of the companies on the list doubled over the past decade as China's industrial structure continued to be optimized, said Zhu Hongren, executive vice-president of the CEC at the press conference to launch the 2022 list.

The number of shortlisted companies in emerging industries and fields has increased, with seven wind energy and solar equipment manufacturing companies and three power and energy storage battery companies currently sitting on the list, Zhu added.