5 firms debut on China's "new third board"

BEIJING, June 8 (Xinhua) -- China's National Equities Exchange and Quotations, also known as the "new third board," saw the debut of five new small and medium-sized enterprises during the past week.

With the newcomers, the total number of companies on the board stood at 9,990 as of Thursday, according to the exchange.

From June 3 to 6, turnover on the board stood at 1.15 billion yuan (about 167 million U.S. dollars), up 1.13 percent from the previous week.

The exchange was launched in early 2013 to supplement the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges to serve small and medium-sized enterprises.

It is seen as an easier financing channel for small businesses, with low costs and simple listing procedures.