BEIJING, May 13 -- China has witnessed a spike in the number of new taxpaying market entities in April as the country's economy continues to recover.

A total of 1.48 million new market entities handling tax-related business were registered last month, an increase of 28.8 percent from the same period last year, data from the State Taxation Administration showed.

Newly registered companies numbered 710,000, representing a rise of 25.6 percent year on year. The number of new individual businesses stood at 759,000 in the reporting period, up 33.6 percent from a year ago.

New market entities handling tax-related business owned by foreign investors totaled 6,000 in April, surging 87.9 percent year on year, while the number of new market entities privately owned went up 28.7 percent to over 1.46 million.

In particular, the number of new market entities from the transportation sector, leasing and business services, and accommodation and catering industries registered rapid growth last month, the administration said.