A view of the Taipei city, Taiwan island Photo: Unsplash

Nearly 60 companies with investment from Taiwan island-based businesses are listed in Chinese mainland's A-share market, as the mainland supports the listing of eligible Taiwan-invested firms, and provides diversified and efficient financial services for them, an official said on Wednesday.

Last year, 10 such companies went public in the A-share market, setting a new record. The total number has now reached 59, Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a press conference.

Taiwan-invested firms have been allowed to list in the A-share market since as early as 2001. The first - Kingair, from East China's Zhejiang Province - went public in 2003 at the Shanghai stock market.
 
Most of the listed companies are in manufacturing, such as electronic equipment makers, and the majority of them went public on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Board. 

"Supporting Taiwan-funded enterprises to list in the A-share market is an important part of the mainland's equal treatment measures for Taiwan compatriots and businesses," Zhang Wensheng, deputy dean of the Taiwan Research Institute at Xiamen University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Financing is a problem for some Taiwan-funded firms in the mainland, and helping them go public is of significance, Zhang said. "It also shows the mainland's confidence in cross-Straits economic exchange, as well as the firms' long-term development."

The mainland has also facilitated the growth of Taiwan-funded firms with other financial services. East China's Fujian Province launched a pilot program of "financial credit certificates for Taiwan businessmen and Taiwan compatriots" in Pingtan in March 2019.

The program now covers the whole Fujian province, providing financial services such as raising credit lines, lowering loan interest rates, and simplifying business procedures for Taiwan businesses with certificates, according to Zhu.

As of the end of January, certificates had been issued to 373 Taiwan compatriots and 233 Taiwan enterprises, with a total credit of 13.97 billion yuan ($2.03 billion).

In 2022, Fujian registered 1,448 new Taiwan-invested firms, accounting for 25 percent of the total number in the mainland. Fujian's actual use of Taiwan funds totaled $206 million last year, up 3 percent year-on-year, local news site fjsen.com reported.

With the firms enjoying equal treatment in the mainland, it is foreseeable that more of them will go public in the mainland and enjoy the growth opportunities, Zhang said.

As February 28 marks the fifth anniversary of the implementation of measures to promote cross-Straits exchange and cooperation, Zhu noted the implementation progress of other measures, such as actively supporting Taiwan enterprises in participating equally in the evaluation of smart and green manufacturing projects.

The mainland has also increased support for Taiwan island-related economic parks. Authorities have approved plans to set up six cross-Straits industrial cooperation zone in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Southwest China's Sichuan Province and other areas, Zhu noted.

Global Times