Haidian District in Beijing plans to support high-tech enterprises in Zhongguancun, the high-tech business center of China, by increasing government procurement and the interest payments on their loans, said the district's spokesman Monday.
Spokesman Yu Jun, who is also deputy head of the district, said some enterprises in this area, especially the small and medium-sized, are facing difficulties due to the spread of SARS in Beijing.
The local government also intends to pull them through by reducing office rents and expanding sales channels.
As of April 26, only 70 percent of the 8,400 high-tech enterprises in Zhongguancun were actively conducting business, while 10 percent had temporarily suspended operations, said Yu.
"Once the SARS situation in Beijing eases up, economic activity in Zhongguancun will be restored rapidly," Yu added.
As of May 4, six people working in Zhongguancun's high-tech enterprises which have more than 100,000 employees, had been diagnosed with SARS.
(Xinhua News Agency May 6, 2003)
