The municipal government of the eastern city of Shanghai established a new cross-department initiative on June 29 to crack down on misleading claims in advertising.

Fang Huiping, the local industry and commerce administration director, said it was an unprecedented move for the city.

The work will focus on health foods, medicines, medical treatments, cosmetics, beauty treatments, real estate and the Internet.

Departments involved include industry and commerce, public security, supervision, public health, culture, press and publication, and radio, film and television.

The move will pay particular attention to false advertising in the form of news releases and exaggerated claims for health foods, medicines and real estate.

The responsibility of leading officials in media running misleading ads will also be examined.

According to the local government, the city's advertising sector involved 6,628 firms by the end of 2004 with a trade volume topping 29.3 billion yuan (US$3.5 billion), around a quarter of the country's total, and employed over 60,000 people.

(Xinhua News Agency July 1, 2005)