Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort, a landmark in Huzhou, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/WeChat account: huzhoufabu]

Huzhou in East China's Zhejiang province was recently included in a national pilot program to boost the synergy between finance and the real economy.

Huzhou is the only prefecture-level city in the country to be included in the program, which was initiated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. 

The program is an effort by the central government to cement the supporting role of finance in the real economy and create a healthy environment conducive to achieving this goal.

Huzhou has already been listed as a national model city for green manufacturing and a national pilot zone for green financing reform.

In recent years, green financing has contributed significantly to the real economy in the city.

In 2019, loans offered by Huzhou to small and micro businesses and private businesses grew by 19.9 percent and 18.8 percent, respectively, ranking first and second respectively in Zhejiang.

Meanwhile, medium and long-term loans to the manufacturing sector grew by 84.8 percent year-on-year, official data show.

The local authorities have already rolled out a three-year plan to advance innovation and reform in financing so as to remove obstacles to the development of the manufacturing industry.

By the end of 2022, the city aims to construct more than 10 special units or bank branches offering green financial services, with the policy-based financing guarantee balance exceeding 2 billion yuan ($289.85 million).