Foreign-funded Ventures Honored for Boosting Tianjin EconomyNorth China's Tianjin Municipality has commended 119 foreign-funded ventures for their contributions to local economy, praising them as a major driving force for the local economic growth last year.A total of 39 such enterprises including Motorola China won the title of "Best Foreign-funded Venture for 1999," with the Tianjin Smith Kline & French Lab Ltd. winning the "Best Economic Efficiency Prize" and another eight enterprises including the Tianjin International Building Co. Ltd awarded for excellent services. At the awarding ceremony, Tianjin Mayor Li Shenglin said the impending entry of China into the World Trade Organization will allow Tianjin to open up further and he also pledged to create an even more favorable investment environment for foreign-funded enterprise in Tianjin. Hailed as the biggest coastal city designated by the central government for opening-up, Tianjin has so far approved more than 10,000 foreign-funded enterprises with 4,328 already going into operation. Foreign-funded ventures in Tianjin realized sales of more than 107 billion yuan in 1999 alone, with their output value, profit, tax, and export accounting for 42 percent, 52.6 percent, 50 percent and 70.9 percent of the city's total, respectively. |
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