Operational Efficiency and Influencing Factors in Sugar Industry: From the Perspective of Chinese Sugar Companies Listed on the Stock Market

Sugar, an important commodity, is strategic for almost all countries in the world. The present study analyzed the operational data of seven sugar companies listed on the stock market in China using data envelopment analysis and panel data regression models. Results showed that Chinese sugar industry had an overall poor performance in 2012, and five of these seven companies did not achieve optimal efficiency. Considering that pure technical efficiency regarding human, physical, and financial inputs had already reached the optimum level, the main factor affecting technical efficiency was scale efficiency. Besides, after continuous adjustment and optimization of company size, all listed sugar companies in China achieved optimal efficiency in 2022, resulting in steady industry growth. An analysis on the factors affecting the stability, financial condition, operational capability, and profitability of these companies suggested that concentrated equity concentration, liabilities and owner’s equity, and enterprise listing time positively influenced the improvement of comprehensive efficiency in the sugar industry. Interestingly, owing to the substantial subsidies provided by the government, the total asset turnover ratio and net profit were not significant interfering factors. Furthermore, sugar companies should continue to update equipment and technology, diversify business operations, improve their operational scale, and use endogenous development dynamics to enhance the capacity and competitiveness for sustainable development. These above results should provide valuable insights and feasible recommendations for the development of sugar industry around the world.