Private enterprises drive economy

The situation for investors in the private sector has been well maintained in Songjiang District and, in turn, private enterprises, accounting for over 90 percent of the district’s economy, have become major engines driving regional economic development, according to officials.

“Songjiang has created a nurturing environment for the private sector,” said Chen Rong, chief of Songjiang Economic Committee.

Autowise.ai, a private sci-tech startup which settled at Tus-Caohejing Science Park in August 2017, developed the world’s first fleet of driverless sweeper trucks in April last year.

The company obtained its angel investment by the end of 2017 and achieved in less than two months its A round of funding of over 100 million yuan (US$14.5 million).

It is now starting business with many sanitation enterprises nationwide.

The achievements Autowise.ai made is inseparable from the G60 High-Tech Corridor cross-regional development vision that attracts talent and gathers technologies and information to the district. G60 is a cross-regional development program agreed between Songjiang and another eight cities in the Yangtze River Delta.

Shanghai Chuanglan Culture Communication Co, another private company based at the science park, developed into a well-known SMS verification code company within a few years of its establishment.

The company is providing services that cover 221 countries and regions. It has channel resources of more than 1,400 operators.

“After our company settled at the park, we couldn’t solve the accommodation problem of more than 300 employees. Then district officials learned of our situation and helped us solve the problem. Now our employees are ready to live in new apartments,” said Tang Xiaobo, chairman of the company.

Compared to the innovative incubator system Tus-Caohejing Science Park adopts to support startup companies, 27 private sector clusters in various communities or towns in the district offer services to private companies.

Based in Zhongshan Community, Shanghai Hebo Hydraulics Co is a leading design and manufacturing plant producing low-speed, high-torque hydraulic motors and matching products.

Financing a sore topic

The company kept on expanding in recent years and was in urgent need of a bigger production base. Officials of the community, once they became aware of the problem, provided them with short-term, mid-term and long-term solutions.

Financing has been a sore topic for the private sector and restraining its development. The district government joined with financial institutes to make it easier for the private sector to get finance.

The Songjiang government has prepared a guidance fund of 200 million yuan to invest in medium and small enterprises. The district guarantee fund center is also cooperating with banks to provide policy-based financing assurance for such enterprises.

China Construction Bank joined with tax authorities and provides loans to enterprises without the need to offer mortgages. By the end of October 2018 the bank had provided credits worth 243 million yuan to 340 companies.

The Post Office Savings Bank launched a green approval channel for qualified private companies with loans under 5 million yuan able to be granted in 7 working days.

Fu Tiegang, section chief of the Songjiang Economic Committee’s service department, said: “About 17,200 private companies registered from January to September 2018. The private sector in the district generated tax revenue of 23.487 billion yuan in the first three quarters of 2018, up 14.2 percent year on year and accounting for 51.73 percent of the total tax revenue of the district.”