An association aimed at promoting enterprises go public was established in Taizhou, East China's Zhejiang province on May 12.

The city's listed companies and IPO candidates were its first batch of members. Zhang Kapeng, chairman of Zhejiang Weixing Co Ltd, was elected as the association's president.

The total number of listed companies in Taizhou had climbed to 63 following the debut of Zhejiang Nature Outdoor Products Co Ltd on the main board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange earlier this month.

It ranks fourth among prefecture-level cities nationwide in the number of A-share listed companies.

As of the end of last year, the market value of listed companies in Taizhou surpassed 600 billion yuan, 14 percent more than the city's gross domestic product (GDP) in the year.

Zhang said that the association's establishment will accelerate the pace of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) among listed companies and help them seek growth by leveraging complementary advantages and resources.

Ye Weizeng, head of the Taizhou municipal office of financial affairs, expressed hope that the association would play an active role in boosting cooperation and communication between the government and enterprises, guiding member enterprises to take part in the city's economic development during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period.