BEIJING, July 1 (Xinhua) -- China's National Equities Exchange and Quotations, also known as the "new third board," saw the debut of two new small and medium-sized enterprises last week.

With the newcomers, the total number of companies on the board reached 11,243, according to the exchange.

From June 25 to 29, turnover on the board stood at 2.14 billion yuan (around 32 million U.S. dollars), up 67.1 percent from the previous week.

The exchange was launched in early 2013 to supplement the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges to serve small and medium-sized enterprises.

It is seen as an easier financing channel for small businesses, with low costs and simple listing procedures. Last year, total turnover on the board stood at 227 billion yuan, up 18.7 percent from 2016.