BEIJING -- China will give priority to small and micro enterprises in its tax rebates to help them navigate difficulties, Premier Li Keqiang said Friday.

Small and micro firms are of a large amount and cover a wide range of sectors, helping create a great number of job opportunities, Li said, stressing many of them are financially strapped.

The country's goal is to refund all value-added tax (VAT) credits to these firms by the end of June, and complete the refund to key sectors, such as manufacturing and R&D-intensive service, within 2022, Li said.

Since the launch of the VAT reform in 2013, China has reduced taxes by 8.7 trillion yuan (about $137.4 billion), Li said.

Businesses have benefited from the tax refunds and fee cuts, which help create new sources of tax revenue and cultivate market entities, Li added.