A total of 156 debuted on the board, up from 103 during the previous week. The number of companies listed on the board rose to 9,637 as of Friday thanks to China's efforts to encourage the development of SMEs amid downward economic pressure.

Turnover on the board reached 4.93 billion yuan (around 715 million U.S. dollars), up 16.82 percent from a week ago.

The New Third Board, or National Equities Exchange and Quotation (NEEQ) system, is a national system for SMEs to transfer shares and raise funds.

It began in 2006 as an experimental platform for non-listed small high-tech enterprises in Beijing's Zhongguancun Science Park. The present system was officially established on Jan. 16, 2013 after trials in cities including Shanghai, Tianjin and Wuhan.