South China's Guangdong province had registered more than 20 million operating entities as of last Wednesday, a net increase of 953,100, or 5 percent, compared to the figure recorded at the end of 2024.

According to a statement released by Guangdong Administration for Market Regulation on Monday, the number of operating entities in the province, which represents one-tenth of the country's total and ranks first nationally, demonstrates the province's good business climate and economic vitality.

With the improvement of the investment environment, there has been a steady increase in the number of foreign-funded enterprises in Guangdong, a global production base, in recent months.

As of the end of August, the number of registered foreign-invested enterprises in the province had reached 230,000, an increase of 15,000 from the figure recorded at the end of 2024, up 6.97 percent.

Many foreign companies regard the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as their "first choice" for investment, according to the statement.

The nine cities in the Greater Bay Area attracted a total of 18,500 newly established foreign-invested enterprises in the eight months ending August, accounting for 97.73 percent of the province's total, demonstrating a significant regional agglomeration effect and the confidence of foreign companies in the region, the statement added.

Meanwhile the development of Guangdong's private economy is enjoying high-quality upgrading. As the main force in Guangdong's economy, the private sector has continued to power development in recent years.

As of the end of August, Guangdong had registered more than 19.25 million private economic organizations, a year-on-year increase of 6.47 percent and accounting for 96.45 percent of the total number of operating entities in the province, the statement read.