Wang Yufen, deputy secretary-in-chief of Shandong provincial government, said this on March 1 while announcing a large trade fair to be held in Hong Kong from May 5 to 10.

The projects have been strictly selected by the government and gone through preliminary feasibility studies, Wang said.

The projects are all large in size with an average investment of over US$100 million and cover a wide range of areas including manufacturing, high technology and some service industries just opened to foreigners after China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), he said.

Among the projects, the government would sell a certain proportion (usually 40 percent) of shares in 20 State-owned enterprises to overseas investors.

These SOEs have total assets of 29.6 billion yuan (US$3.58 billion), Wang said.

He promised investors that they would find Shandong, one of China's most prosperous provinces, a good place to make a profit.

The government is committed to improving its efficiency and providing best services to investors, Wang added.

(Xinhua News Agency March 4, 2002)