China 's state oil companies are operating autonomously and are helping boost oil supplies globally, an energy watchdog said in a report Thursday, contrary to a widespread perception that they are acting under the sole orders of the country's government.

Chinese state companies such as Cnooc Ltd. (0883.HK) and Sinopec (SNP) have become key players in global mergers and acquisitions, leading to suspicions they could preempt new production for the buoyant Asian economy.

But in its special report on oil companies in China, the International Energy Agency said it concluded that they "actually operate with a high degree of independence from the Chinese government, and their investments have in fact largely boosted global supplies of oil and gas, which other importers rely on."

"A common perception about the management of these [national oil companies] was that the government imposed a quota on the amount of equity oil--a piece of ownership in a company that produces oil--they must send back to China," it said.

But the IEA found that "decisions about the marketing of equity oil...appear to be dominated by market considerations," with almost all their share of production in the Americas sold locally.

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