Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang province has recently garnered recognition as one of the top 10 provincial capitals and vice-provincial cities in China for its favorable business environment.

This achievement was highlighted in a report released by the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce on Dec 27 at a conference held in Kunming, Yunnan province. The report was based on a survey polling thousands of private enterprises across the country throughout the year.

The evaluation of this year's business environment employed a new ranking method adopted by the federation which listed the top 10 provinces and cities in random order while also sorting them by administrative divisions. The assessment took into account various factors, including government affairs, market conditions, adherence to the rule of law, and innovation.

Nanjing, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Hefei, Qingdao, Wuhan, Changsha, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chengdu were recgnoized as having the top 10 most favorable business environments among provincial capitals and vice-provincial cities.

Furthermore, the report acknowledged the top 10 provinces (municipalities) with the most congenial business environment to be Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Shandong, Hubei, Hunan, and Guangdong.

In recent years, Ningbo has actively worked to enhance its business environment, with a particular focus on facilitating ease of doing business in the city by streamlining administrative service procedures. As part of these efforts, over 290 frequently used licenses have been digitized, enabling paperless processing within the city. The average processing time for investment projects has been significantly reduced from 172 days to just 47 working days. Additionally, Ningbo has inaugurated Zhejiang's first one-stop international legal service center, providing comprehensive legal support to businesses.

In September, the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce released its list of the top 500 private enterprises in China for 2023. Twenty companies from Ningbo were included, representing an uptick of two compared to the previous year. The number of listed companies in Ningbo ranked second in Zhejiang and sixth nationwide. This recognition further solidifies Ningbo's reputation as a thriving hub for private enterprises and highlights its significant contribution to China's vibrant business landscape.