TCL and Alcatel Mobile Phones Limited (TAMP), a new global handset company jointly set by TCL Communication Technology Holdings Limited (TCL Communication) and Alcatel, officially goes into operation Sunday.

It is the first time that Chinese company expands its mobile phone business worldwide, sources from the Ministry of Information Industry (MII) said.

After its establishment, the TAMP's sales volume of mobile phones is expected to reach 20 million, ranking first in China and seventh in the world, sources said.

TCL is a leading multimedia consumer electronics product manufacturer in China and Asia. France's Alcatel leverages its leading position in fixed and mobile broadband networks, application and services in more than 130 countries.

In TAMP, TCL Communication holds 55 percent equity stake and Alcatel owns the remaining 45 percent.

The MII official said "international cooperation, especially the influx of large amounts of foreign investment, plays a vital role in sustainable growth of China's information industry."

At present, 90 percent of the firms in electronic and information industry of Fortune 500 have invested in China, according to MII statistics.

The gross income from sales, total profit and export volume of electronic companies with foreign investment account for 70 percent of the total of China's electronic and information industry, MII noted.

Besides expanding production, foreign investors also set up research centers and consumers' service centers in China, sources said.

(People’s Daily October 11, 2004)