Shanghai aims to list around 30 small and medium local companies each year when China's proposed growth board is launched, Vice Mayor Ai Baojun said yesterday.

"To help small and medium companies grow is among key issues in this year's agenda, and we should take advantage of the creation of the growth board," Ai said at a work conference for the city's industrial development.

China proposes its own Nasdaq-like growth board in Shenzhen this year to help finance start-up companies, Premier Wen Jiabao reaffirmed yesterday at the National People's Congress?(NPC)?session.

The threshold for a listing on the growth board will be lower than on the main board.

"The success of many small and medium companies is crucial to the success of major companies in the region as small ones can always supply bigger ones," said Ai, a former Baosteel executive.

He said relevant city government agencies have been working on procedures to make small enterprises ready for an initial public offering, and would give preferential policies to them, urging such companies to be more innovation-oriented and nurture their own brands.

He didn't elaborate or identify any of the listing hopefuls.

Ai also said Shanghai will lure more major state-owned firms to set up regional headquarters here.

At the same conference, the Shanghai Economic Commission said that the financial hub aims to realize industrial added value of 560 billion yuan (US$78.9 billion) this year, up 10 percent from 2007.

(Shanghai Daily March 6, 2008)