(Yicai) Feb. 21 -- China’s central bank said it is stepping up efforts to mitigate the financing difficulties and high costs faced by private companies, after the country held its first high-level symposium on the private economy in six years at the start of this week.

The People’s Bank of China intends to further streamline the financing channels of stocks, bonds, and loans as well as increase the allocation of financial resources for private businesses, it said at a meeting yesterday, with the aim of providing robust financial support for the healthy development and growth of the private economy and private enterprises.

The central bank said it aims to expand bond financing for private companies, beef up the risk-sharing mechanisms for their corporate bonds, and support them in issuing financing instruments, such as tech innovation bonds, green bonds, and asset-backed securities.

It also pledged to improve the credit enhancement system for private small- and medium-sized enterprises, optimize financial services for industry and supply chains to support easier financing for private firms, establish a bank-enterprise communication system, and effectively use the national credit information-sharing platform for small and micro enterprises to streamline service processes and enhance their financing efficiency.

The bank also called for speeding up the implementation of the 25 measures to support the private economy that were issued in November 2023 in the Notice on Strengthening Financial Support Measures to Boost the Development and Growth of the Private Economy.

China held its first high-level symposium on the private economy since 2018 on Feb. 17, signaling a strong commitment to stabilizing the private economy and boosting confidence among private enterprises. Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the symposium in Beijing and delivered an important speech after listening to representatives from various private companies.

Editor: Futura Costaglione