Beijing: Over 40 million of China's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are powering the Communist trading giant's great leap forward in GDP growth as well as foreign trade, the state media reported.

More than 40 million small and medium-sized businesses make up about 99.6 per cent of China's enterprises, and they accounted for 70 per cent of the country's total foreign trade worth USD 1,422.12 billion last year, according to the China Small and Medium Enterprise Index of Economic Development released by Nankai University in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin.

The index shows that nearly 60 per cent of China's gross domestic product (GDP) was generated by small and medium-sized enterprises last year. SMEs account for more than 48.2 per cent of the country's taxation revenue and 60 per cent of the total sales volume.

Seventy-five per cent of urban-based employees work for SMEs, the index.

The Nankai University was commissioned by the National Development and Reform Commission, the nation's top planning body and the Finance Ministry to compile the report.