Baiyun district launches measures to help businesses resume

To lessen the impact of their economic losses Baiyun district -- in Guiyang city in Southwest China's Guizhou province -- recently launched 22 measures to support  local businesses during the containment of the novel coronavirus epidemic, local official said.

A special fund of 2 million yuan ($288,000) is being established to underwrite subsidies or financing measures to reduce the effective interest rates on loans, to assist enterprises producing daily necessities. 

For supermarkets and stores offering fresh food to residents, 50 percent of logistics fees will be given as subsidies and a maximum of 100,000 yuan will be given to such service providers.

To increase social reserves of materials, Baiyun district will give 50 percent a discount on interest for those listed enterprises using loans to reserve necessary materials; a maximum subsidy of 100,000 yuan will be offered to each enterprise.

Enterprises and individual businesses affected by the epidemic outbreak can apply to get a two month waiver on rent in February and March -- and 50 percent off rent over the following three months.

In order to broaden the financing channels of businesses, Baiyun district will allocate 5 million yuan for a credit loan risk compensation fund. It will also work with cooperative banks to issue more mortgage free, guarantee free and service fee free credit loans for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Officials said they will circulate new job postings through various platforms to increase employment. 

For small and medium-sized enterprises suffering from operational difficulties, premiums on medical insurance, endowment insurance, unemployment insurance and work-related injury insurance of employees may be postponed for up to six months.

Companies with a production capacity over 50 million yuan will be offered a fixed project investment subsidy or loan discount, to support production transformations and upgrades. A maximum of 500,000 yuan will be offered to a company.

The government has also made efforts to ensure the stability of daily supplies and prices. Every shopping mall and complex business will be given a one-time subsidy of up to 100,000 yuan, based on their total sales.

It will provide a subsidy of 50 percent on online food delivery fees for catering businesses. A maximum of 30,000 yuan will be given for each business.

In case of credit default of enterprises affected by the epidemic, credit restoration shall be facilitated to help enterprises rebuild credit, eliminate adverse effects and avoid credit risk.

Furthermore, in order to avoid risk of infection from the epidemic, Baiyun district is now comprehensively using government service platforms. Officials said enterprises can now easily handle their business affairs online, or through contactless communication channels.