North China's port city Tianjin exported 1.31 million mobile phones in January this year, up 190 percent over the same period of last year, according to a local customs report.

According to figures from Tianjin Customs, the mobile phone export from the city in January this year reached 196 million US dollars, up 290 percent over the same period of 2004.

Of the exported mobile phones, 1,25 million, or 95 percent of the total, went to the United States. Mobile phone export to the United States was increased by 180 percent year-on-year.

Motorola will make Tianjin one of its leading mobile phone production centers in the world, with a monthly output of 3.7 million mobile phones. Samsung will close its production line in Spain this year and open a new factory, with a monthly output of two million mobile phones, in Tianjin in the second quarter this year.

Experts here said the higher export tax rebate rate is a major factor stimulating China's mobile phone export. China raised the tax rebate rate of exported mobile phones to 17 percent from former 13 percent beginning January 1 this year.

(Xinhua News Agency February 25, 2005)