Zhejiang SMEs get preferential policies

Hangzhou (CNS) -- The Zhejiang government is implementing a series of preferential policies for its small and micro-sized enterprises (SMEs), which together with mid-sized companies serve as the backbone of the provincial economy, Deputy Governor Mao Guanglie announced in an address to a provincial meeting on Wednesday.

By the end of January, this eastern province of China had 569,000 SMEs on record, about 97 percent of the number of companies at all scales. The region's SME development is a pioneer of the whole country.

Concerns for their future development basically lie in their structural defects, limited technological value, and low resistance to risk, Mao explained.

In 2011, the provincial government set aside a special fund for SMEs and mid-sized companies, and cut certain tax burdens they had been carrying, in order to assist their maturation and growth.

The special fund's standard was raised from 20 to 30 million yuan (about US$ 3.17 to 4.75 million) most favoring SMEs. That was complemented by two other special provincial funds for industrial transformation and strategic development of new industries, both with 500 million yuan (about US$ 79.24 million) to distribute.

Provincial taxation cuts saved the SMEs no less than 6 billion yuan (about US$ 951 million) in 2011. In detail, about 31 administrative charges were withdrawn in general, and SMEs were spared from satisfying another 31 tax items for three years. Last year the province also reduced SMEs social insurance fees by about 1.5 billion yuan (about US$ 237.7 million).

SMEs in the area of science and technology are encouraged to expand their business to a certain scale. Endorsement polices also include applications for national projects, which financed Zhejiang's SMEs and mid-sized companies to the tune of about 700 million yuan (US$ 110.94 million) last year.