Report says financing services for small firms improve

BEIJING - Chinese small and micro-sized enterprises received better financing service in the third quarter of last year as the government stepped up efforts to tackle financing difficulties for the real economy, a report showed.

Financing services became cheaper and easier to obtain for cash-starved small corporate borrowers in the July-Sept period, according to a report published by China Construction Bank and China Economic Information Service under Xinhua News Agency.

Indices measuring financing costs, business activities and other aspects of financing services registered significant increases or remained relatively stable, the report showed.

The financing supply index rose to 132.73 from 130.05 last quarter, and indices on availability and quality of financing service stood at 147.59 and 110.67, both up from a quarter ago.

The business development index retreated mildly to 52.89 but was still well above the 50-point boom-bust line, and the index on the environment for small firms climbed to 56.43, up from 54.8 a quarter ago.

Gan Li, a professor at Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, said the improvement in the indices showed the financing difficulties for small firms were eased and their status quo and prospects also improved.

Widening financing channels for small and micro-sized enterprises remains high on the government work agenda. Chinese authorities have rolled out an array of measures, including a targeted cut in banks' reserve requirement ratios to prompt stronger financial support for money-hungry firms.

Chinese small firms have suffered significant hardships amid the ongoing economic slowdown, but their activities will likely bottom out this year thanks to an improving financing environment and confidence and technological upgrades, said Zhang Liyun, a researcher with China Minsheng Bank.