Enterprises engaged in ethnic minority trade, at the county-level or above, were given tax rebates worth 1.2 billion yuan (157.9 million U.S. dollars) during China's 10th "Five-Year" Plan period (2001-2005).

Enterprises below county-level were exempted from 1 billion yuan (131.6 million U.S. dollars) of value added taxes during the period, according to the State Ethnic Affairs Commission (SEAC) on Friday.

Enterprises selling tea to remote ethnic areas were remitted value added tax worth about 50 million yuan (6.6 million U.S. dollars), said an SEAC official.

Producers of necessities for ethnic minority people were also granted loans with discounted interest rates from 2001 to 2005, which saved them 2.2 billion yuan (289 million U.S. dollars), the official said.

Central finance has allocated 14.45 million yuan (1.9 million U.S. dollars) to help these enterprises build trade networks between ethnic areas and pay interest for their loans, he said.

Relevant state departments also offered preferential policies for enterprises engaged in ethnic trade, especially producers of Muslim food, tea and rubber overshoes -- all badly need necessities in ethnic areas, to ensure a stable supply of special goods for ethnic minorities, he added.

By the end of 2005, there were 1,855 designated manufacturers of special goods for ethnic minorities in China, covering about 500 product categories.

Source: Xinhua