China"sSmallandMediumEnterprisesDevelopmentIndexgrewby1.3pointsinthefirstquarteroftheyear,comparedwiththepreviousquarter,markingthehighestincreaseoftheindexsincethefourthquarterof2020,industrydatashowedonSunday.

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Theindex,whichiscalculatedbasedonasurveyof3,000smallandmedium-sizedenterprises,posted89.3pointsbetweenJanuaryandMarch,accordingtotheChinaAssociationofSmallandMediumEnterprises.

TheobjectiveoftheindexistoprovidecomprehensiveevaluationanddynamicobservationofthestatusanddevelopmentofChina"sSMEs.Itcontainsmultiplesubindexestogaugetheirperformancesandgrowthexpectations.

Amongtheeightsub-industryindexes,thehospitalityandcatering,transportation,informationtransmissionandsoftwareindustriesexperiencedthehighestincreasesinthefirstquarterofthisyear.

Inthemeantime,themacroeconomicsentimentindex,whichreflectstheSMEs"confidenceinfuturedevelopment,andthebenefitindexshowednotablegrowth,accordingtotheChinaAssociationofSmallandMediumEnterprises.

Analystssaidthegovernment"scontinuouseffortstostabilizetheeconomy,includingtaxcuts,feereductions,consumptionstimulationpackages,measurestosupporttheprivatesectorandtheresurgenceoftheexhibitioneconomy,havecontributedtotheincreaseinbusinessconfidenceamongSMEs.Theypredictedthatthegrowthtrendwillcontinueinthesecondquarteroftheyear.

ZhangYongjun,deputychiefeconomistattheBeijing-basedChinaCenterforInternationalEconomicExchanges,saidthegrowthoftheSMEDevelopmentIndexismainlyattributedtothegovernment"seffortstoincreaselendingforcapitalexpenditureandsupportprivateinvestmentinmajorprojectssincethesecondhalfof2022.

"These(efforts)havenotonlycreatednewdevelopmentopportunitiesforSMEsintheindustrialchain,butalsoboostedtheirconfidenceinthenextstage,"Zhangsaid,addingthatmanycompaniesshowedtheirwillingnesstoincreaseinvestmentinordertoexpandtheirproductioncapacityinthesecondquarter.

Chinarecentlyimplementedmeasuressuchasextendingtaxbreaksforlow-profitsmallbusinessesandself-employedindividuals,andprovidingpretaxdeductionsforresearchanddevelopmentexpensesofcompanies.

Thesepoliciesarepartofthecountry"scountercyclicaleconomicpolicyadjustmentsandaimtopromoteinnovationandindustrialupgrade,accordingtoChenBin,deputydirectoroftheexpertcommitteeattheChinaMachineryIndustryFederationinBeijing.

"Theconsistentimplementationofthesepolicieswilleffectivelystimulatethemarket"svitality,spurexportsandcreatefreshemploymentprospectsthisyear,"Chensaid.

SinceChinaoptimizeditsCOVID-19responsemeasures,manySMEshavebeenstrivingtoexpandtheirglobalmarketshareinvariousindustriessuchasautomobiles,consumergoods,greendevelopmentandhigh-endmanufacturing,headded.

TextileandgarmentmanufacturersfromShaoxing,Zhejiangprovince,havebeenheadinginthatdirection.Thecity"sexhibitorgroup,formedby167companieswithatotalof224boothsandanexhibitionareaofover4,000squaremeters,gainedintendedordersworthover$35milliononthefirstdayoftheVietnamSaigonTextile&GarmentIndustryExpo,whichwasheldfromWednesdaythroughSaturdayinHoChiMinhCity.

"Drivenbymegafreetradedeals,suchastheRegionalComprehensiveEconomicPartnership,andthegrowingtradevaluebetweenChinaandtheAssociationofSoutheastAsianNations,wearekeentofurtherdevelopthemarketsinSoutheastAsia,"saidWangYongwei,presidentofXinchangJinxingMachineryCo,aShaoxing-basedtextileequipmentmanufacturer.

CoveringalargenumberofSMEs,China"sprivatecompaniessawtheirforeigntradevaluegrow5.3percentyear-on-yearto3.16trillionyuan($460billion)inthefirsttwomonthsof2023,accountingfor51.2percentofthecountry"stotalexportandimportvalue,datafromtheGeneralAdministrationofCustomsshowed.

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