China's National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEEQ), also known as the "new third board," has seen a turnover of around 72.93 billion yuan (about 10.46 billion U.S. dollars) so far this year.

Last year, the NEEQ witnessed a turnover of 82.6 billion yuan. From July 27 to July 31 this year, its turnover reached 11.83 billion yuan. 

As of Friday, 8,509 companies were listed on the NEEQ.

In the first half of this year, the NEEQ saw total funds raised by 17.43 percent compared to the preceding six-month period as it undergoes market-oriented reform.

Launched in 2013, the NEEQ intends to offer small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) a new financing channel with low costs and simple listing procedures.

China has outlined a series of reforms to better orient the NEEQ to the needs and features of small enterprises and support the quality growth of the real economy. 

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Expert: Investors behave cautiously for NEEQ Select tier's first trading day

(With input from Xinhua)

(Cover: A man at a trading floor in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province, July 24, 2020. /VCG)