China's sea ports and ocean shipping enterprises are fully prepared for Y2K millennium bug, hoping to avoid possible computer glitches which would lose them overseas and domestic customers.

The ports and enterprises have carefully studied the Y2K problem and invested heavily to renovate and upgrade all computer systems and equipment where the Y2K problem may exist, Feng Maorun, chief engineer of the Ministry of Communications, told Xinhua .

"The profits of all customers will be guaranteed at the turn of the century," he said.

People both in China and from overseas have noted their concern about whether China's ports and enterprises have resolved the Y2K problem, Feng said.

He added that computerized management has been applied in China 's sea ports and ocean shipping businesses, which if grounded by the Y2K bug could threaten the lives of sailors, safety of vessels and interests of customers.

The Ministry of Communications is one of the 20 key units designated by the State Council to resolve the Y2K matter, while the port and navigation system is regarded as a priority for the effort in the communications sector.

A special inspection team of officials and experts from the ministries of information industry and communications recently toured ports and transport enterprises in east China's Shanghai and Ningbo cities and the north China port city of Tianjin, saying that they are confident the sea ports and ocean shipping enterprises will enter safely into the year 2000.

Shanghai and Ningbo ports have resolved the Y2K problem in all large computer systems and the effort has passed assessment. The China Ocean Shipping Corporation (COSCO), the country's leading sea transport enterprise, has tested and revised more than 5,200 computers and other equipment vulnerable to Y2K.

Feng said that China's sea ports and ocean fleets have drawn up emergency contingency plans to cope with Y2K accidents, and rehearsals of the plans are continuing.

The Y2K millennium bug stems from the way that early computer programmers used only the last two digits of the four-digit year number in an effort to save memory. In this sense, computers may take the year 2000 as 1900, and disorders will occur.