China's SMEs improve business activities

The business activities of China's small and medium-sized enterprises improved marginally in January, as the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Index saw its largest rise in growth over the past two years.

According to the China Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, the index, based on a survey of 3,000 SMEs, rose and came in at 88.9 last month. The index soared 1 point compared with the previous month, the largest increase since 2021.

Ma Bin, executive vice president of the association, said, "The business operations of the country's SMEs improved greatly in January, thanks to the coordinate COVID-19 response and a package of supporting policies."

Notably, the sub-indexes for eight sectors all witnessed a recovery during the period. Transportation and storage as well as accommodation and catering all saw their biggest growth, up 1.7 points and 1.8 points, respectively, month-on-month.

chengyu@chinadaily.com.cn