The Chinese public has been told that 30 percent of firecrackers on the market are substandard a month before the Spring Festival, a holiday traditionally observed with fireworks.

The result stems from an annual quality overhaul launched by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

The latest inspection involved 254 kinds of fireworks and crackers manufactured by 234 firms in 16 provinces and autonomous regions for domestic sale.

However, the figure was still down 13 percentage points from 2005.

"The quality of China's fireworks and crackers have improved a lot on the whole, but problems remain prominent with some small manufacturers," reads the inspection report.

The administration urged consumers to check the origin of the products, ensure there are no cracks and that the fuse is long enough.

After lifting a 12-year fireworks ban last year, the Beijing municipal government organized the sale of 600,000 boxes of firecrackers valued at more than 100 million yuan (US$12.5 million) for its citizens during last year's Spring Festival.

China has about 7,000 fireworks plants and 140,000 distributors, which employ about 1.5 million people. Official data from the State Administration of Work Safety showed that on the average, the country reports 406 fireworks accidents every year with 445 deaths.

(Xinhua News Agency January 18, 2007)