Intensified support for the development of the private sector and small and medium-sized enterprises was pledged at the State Council executive meeting on Dec 24. 

The views of businesses must be heeded in deciding business-related policies, and reasonable transition periods should be arranged, a statement released after the meeting said. Businesses of all sizes and all types of ownership will be treated as equals in tendering, land use and other respects under the principle of competitive neutrality. 

Unless otherwise stipulated, all restrictions on the minimum registered capital and the equity structure of private firms will be removed when the firms in question invest in resource development, transportation and public utilities, the statement said. 

In order to support stronger innovation capacity, catalogs of recommended products and services will be issued to help high-tech SMEs gain better access to the market. Private firms will also be supported in participating in the research and development of core technologies and the formulation of national standards, it said. 

The lawful rights and interests of private entrepreneurs, including their safety and property, will be protected in accordance with the law, the statement said, adding that no government department, public institution or State-owned enterprise should defer contractual payments owed to private businesses.