The trade volume between Chinese mainland and Taiwan reached 91.23 billion US dollars last year as more and more Taiwan businesses, hi-tech ones in particular, come to invest in the most populous market, said a mainland official on Taiwan affairs here Monday.

He Shizhong, director of the economic bureau of the Taiwan Affairs Office under the State Council, said that many Taiwan business conglomerates and listed firms have invested in factories in regions such as eastern and southeastern China and gradually moved to less developed central and west regions.

Taiwan hi-tech businesses have quickened their steps "especially in recent years to the mainland market, a hotspot of Taiwan businessmen's investment in the mainland."

According to statistics released by the Ministry of Commerce, 3,907 Taiwan-invested projects were approved in the mainland last year with a contractual value of 10.36 billion dollars and 2.15 billion dollars actually used.

The mainland export to Taiwan stood at 16.55 billion dollars and import 74.68 billion dollars at a trade deficit of 58.13 billion dollars last year.

The Chinese mainland is Taiwan's No. 1 export market and largest trade surplus source, while Taiwan is mainland's second largest import market.

By the end of last year, 68,095 Taiwan-invested projects were ratified by the mainland with a contractual value of 89.695 billion dollars and 41.76 billion dollars used.

The cross-Straits indirect trade volume hit 495.805 billion dollars accumulatively as the mainland export to Taiwan reached 81.728 billion dollars and import 414.077 billion dollars.

Taiwan enjoyed a total trade surplus with the mainland of 332.349 billion dollars.

Taiwan businesses have been seeking investment opportunities along with the mainland's economic reform and open-up process initiated in the late 1970s, from labor-intensive processing trade in the 1980s to heavy and chemical industries in the 1990s and information manufacturing sector to financial and aviation industries since 2000.

Source: Xinhua