Free trade zone will help deepen cross-Strait business cooperation

A free trade zone in Fujian province was launched on Tuesday to help deepen cross-Straits business cooperation with Taiwan.

The FTZ in Fuzhou, capital of the province, was approved in December by the State Council and covers 118.04 sq km. It also includes the cities of Xiamen and Fuzhou, and the county of Pingtan.

The Pingtan section will focus on building a "common home" for people across the Straits. The Xiamen region will have a cross-Straits demonstration zone for emerging industries, trade and financial services. The Fuzhou section will aim to become a demonstration zone of cross-Straits service trades and financial innovation.

Zhong Muda, deputy director of the Fujian provincial department of commerce, said business investment thresholds had been lowered. This would allow Taiwan business people to apply for individual licenses without revealing their investments in China.

These policies will help pave the way for increased cross-Straits investment, said Liu Chih-Chun, chairman of CPT Technology (Group) Co Ltd, a Taiwan technology company.

Liu suggested that the FTZ will attract clusters of companies working in the same sectors. "Take the LCD (liquid crystal display) industry as an example. If the FTZ has companies engaged in designing touch screens and companies producing monitors, there will be a great deal of integration for LCD products," said Liu. "The FTZ in that case would become more competitive."