BEIJING -- The Chinese mainland has further expanded market access for Taiwan residents, allowing them to start individually-owned businesses in 122 sectors including cereal crop farming, fruit planting, beverage manufacturing, and pet services.

The move is the latest effort to help residents from Taiwan seek employment and enjoy the development opportunities on the mainland, Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, told a press conference on Wednesday.

Taiwan residents are welcome to run businesses in 27 pilot areas for innovative development of service trade across the mainland, including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing, Hainan, Dalian, Xiamen, Qingdao and Shenzhen, stated a guideline released by the Taiwan affairs office, the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration for Market Regulation.