Over the past year in Wuxi, economic performance, especially in the private sector, has remarkably improved thanks to the growing trend for mass innovation and entrepreneurship.

According to the city's industry and commerce department, Wuxi recorded 37,786 domestic companies with total capital of 237.9 billion yuan ($35 billion), up 18 and 48 percent respectively from 2015. Of those, 4,125 are startups, with a total registered capital of 19.7 billion yuan. The increase rate stands at 21 percent, 4 percent above the industry’s average in China.

Many in the city appear to have taken the plunge and decided to set up their own businesses. The number of self-employed now exceeds 52,000, an 8 percent increase year-on-year. The area distribution data shows Jiangyin and Yixing, two county-level cities in Wuxi, registered the most dynamic growth. The wholesale and retail industries registered the most new startups.

In response to government calls for mass innovation and entrepreneurship, more people are applying their creative skills to the city's industrial development, injecting new life into the city's economy.