In the second half of 2023, Qingdao will help the private economy gain strength from the five dimensions, namely shoring up confidence and adding drivers, cultivating market entities, optimizing industry and reinforcing clusters, guaranteeing elements and facilitating empowerment, improving environment and support conditions, work out award policies for “Little Giant” enterprises that are specialized, refined, differential and most innovative and advance the legislation of the regulations on promoting the development of SMEs, according to the 2023 Qingdao semi-annual work conference on private economy,

Since the beginning of this year, the private economy in Qingdao has withstood the fallout from unexpected factors and presented enormous resilience. In the first half of this year, there are 2.06 million private market entities citywide, a year-on-year increase of 4.6%; private investments edged up 3.9% and accounted for 59.9% of fixed asset investments; imports and exports by private enterprises amounted to RMB308.57bln, a year-on-year increase of 17.7% and representing 71.7% of the total; the private economy hired additional 148,000 employees, occupying 81.3% of the newly increased jobs in urban areas.  (Zhou Xiaofeng)