Policies pledged to shield such firms from being seriously impacted by COVID-19

President Xi Jinping pledged on Sunday to take measures to protect small and medium-sized companies from being seriously impacted by the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remark while inspecting an industrial park producing auto parts and molds in Ningbo, Zhejiang province.

Xi said all kinds of enterprises could be affected by the epidemic outbreak, and the State has taken small and medium-size companies into special consideration as it appraised the situation.