Economy

More Taiwan firms enter mainland subsidy list

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-02-24 17:57

BEIJING: Five Taiwan home appliance manufacturers have entered the list of suppliers whose products are eligible for the government subsidy program designed to boost rural consumption in the mainland, a spokeswoman said here Wednesday.

Four of them entered the list for the second time, State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Fan Liqing said at a regular press conference.

Since last year, under the program named "home appliances for the countryside," rural residents on the Chinese mainland can receive a 13 percent subsidy offered by the government to buy home appliance such as color TVs, refrigerators, mobile phones and washing machines produced by manufacturers on the list.

Some 478 Chinese and overseas companies are on this year's list. Among them are Taiwan-based ASUSTek Computer Inc, Acer, Taiwan Sakura Corporation and Top Victory Electronics.

Last year, Taiwan firms in the list sold about 47,000 products for a total revenue of 108.6 million yuan ($15.74 million) under the program, Fan said.

"This year, as authorities have raised the price ceiling for home appliance in the program, more Taiwan firms' products have entered into the list," she said.

According to vice minister of finance Zhang Shaochun, this year the price ceiling for a color TV set is raised from 3,500 to 7,000 yuan and a cell phone from 1,000 to 2,000 yuan. As for other products, the increase varies from 25 to 75 percent.

ASUSTek has 50 types of products in the list while Top Victory Electronics has 17.

"More Taiwan products in the program will improve economic cooperation across the Taiwan Strait and will bring a new dynamic to help the two sides battle the global financial crisis," Fan said.

In the first ten months of 2009, rural residents in the mainland bought 27.8 million sets of home appliances under the program, giving a boost to the industry hurt by the slowdown in foreign markets.