Officials of WuXi AppTec Co Ltd attend the listing ceremony for the company's stock at the Shanghai Stock Exchange on May 8. WuXi AppTec specializes in pharmacies, biotechnology, and medical device development. [Photo by Huan Wei/for China Daily]

The number of Wuxi firms listed at home and abroad increased in 2018 thanks to the city's strong industrial foundation and fast economic development.

A total of 138 Wuxi companies are now listed, of which 11 companies are newcomers. Wuxi ranks first in East China's Jiangsu province in both total listed enterprises and the number of newly listed enterprises over the past three years.

New economic companies, such as those working in biomedicine, high-end manufacturing and environmental protection, are main newly listed Wuxi companies.

WuXi AppTec, China's contract research provider, got listed on the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange on May 8, marking the nation's first unicorn to get IPO approval on the A-share market.

Wuxi Shangji Automation Co has seen its technical level and product performance indicators reach or even exceed that of advanced enterprises abroad. Pengyao Environmental Protection Group has also grown rapidly as a national key hi-tech company.

Lu'ou Road in Wuxi's Binhu district is now famous for having 11 companies that have been listed or are preparing to be listed in 2019.

Wuxi government will continue to support companies in industries such as biosciences, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing to promote the city's capital market and foster the new economy.