BEIJING — Eighteen new small and medium-sized enterprises debuted on China's National Equities Exchange and Quotation (NEEQ), also known as the "new third board," in the past week.

The total number of companies on the board reached 11,627 on Friday, NEEQ data showed.

Turnover on the board stood at 4.34 billion yuan (about $655 million) from Dec 4 to 8, up 8.95 percent from the previous week.

NEEQ was launched in early 2013 to supplement the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges in serving small and medium-sized enterprises.

It is seen as an easy financing channel for small businesses with low costs and simple listing procedures.