According to experts, more policy support is anticipated to expand financing channels for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that specialize in niche industries with advanced technologies. This will assist them in obtaining technical and talent support from industry-leading companies.
The Chinese government is making a push to cultivate more innovative tech SMEs with timely funding and business incubation platforms. These SMEs accounted for 59 percent of last year’s IPOs in the A-share market, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Xu Xiaolan, Vice-Minister of the MIIT, reported that specialized and sophisticated SMEs with new and unique products accounted for 27 percent of all A-share-listed companies by the end of last year. As of now, more than 60,000 SMEs have been identified as specialized and sophisticated enterprises that produce new and unique products. Among them, 8,997 were also categorized as “little giant” enterprises by the government, the MIIT said.
Little giant enterprises typically specialize in niche sectors, command high market shares, and boast strong innovative capacity, making them highly specialized market leaders.
Li Feng, head of innovation and development at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, stated that developing such SMEs is essential for China to improve the stability and competitiveness of the industrial chain by providing new and unique products to “fill in the gaps”.
To support the high-quality development of such SMEs, industry leaders should empower those companies by leveraging their own advantages like technology and talent, Huang Wei, deputy general manager of Luxshare Precision, a little giant company specializing in cable assembly and connector systems solutions, added. Cooperation with industry leaders can help many companies achieve major technological breakthroughs and accelerate their transition from technology to business.
However, SMEs still face challenges in critical areas such as talent, technology, and capital. Li said that currently, many tech SMEs still face challenges in key elements such as talent, technology, and capital. To obtain State-backed investment is also a challenge for SMEs. Li Zibin, chairman of the China Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, also said that a majority of SMEs are now facing funding difficulties.
Therefore, it is necessary to improve China’s financial system to expand direct financing channels for SMEs specializing in niche industries with cutting-edge technologies, according to Li. Further support should also be given in the areas of taxes and measures to recruit professionals.
Xu said the authorities will increase their efforts to create a favorable environment for the development of such SMEs, expedite their IPOs and encourage more social capital to invest in the early stage. The goal is to cultivate more than 80,000 such SMEs and about 10,000 little giant firms by the end of this year.
To promote the high-quality development of SMEs specializing in niche industries with cutting-edge technologies, it is necessary to leverage the leading role of industry leaders to share resources and provide services to those SMEs, empowering them with technology, resources, and experience, Zhang Xiaoqiang, executive vice-chairman of the CCIEE, said. At the same time, the government should play a role in promoting interactive development between industry leaders and such SMEs.
Lenovo Group Vice-President Wang Zhong stated that the company will continue to concentrate on helping SMEs overcome obstacles that hinder their high-quality development, and assist them in improving aspects of technical innovation and digital management to enhance competitiveness on a global scale.