Chinese Premier Li Keqiang pledged Friday timely support for contact-based service firms, in particular small ones that have suffered the most amid the COVID-19 epidemic, in an effort to stabilize employment and economy.

The government has rolled out multiple supportive policies, including tax refunds of 180 billion yuan (about 28 billion U.S. dollars) for sectors from catering to transport and tourism, the premier said at a press conference after the closing of the fifth session of the 13th National People's Congress.