An official with China's Science and Technology Ministry said recently that China is brewing favorable policies in addition to offering financial support to encourage the development of the bio-tech industry.

The bio-tech industry could enjoy favorable policies like that of software industry, said Liu Qian, director of bio-engineering center under the ministry.

These policies include favorable considerations for listing on the stock market, tax free treatment for venture capital invested in related industries, and prolonged periods of tax cuts for bio-technological enterprises.

Liu also said that the state will allocate four to five times the total research fund given to bio-technology in the past 15 years for the coming five years.

China will establish 20 world-level research and development bases in the future to enhance its ability in genetics, bio- information and bio-chip research.

(People's Daily 04/17/2001)