China will set aside 80 billion yuan (nearly US$1 billion) this year for mergers and bankruptcies of enterprises that are incurring losses and producing pollution and are with exhausted resources.

This was announced Friday by Li Rongrong, minister in charge of the State Economic and Trade Commission at a press conference sponsored by the ongoing annual session of the National People Congress.

Continued efforts will be made to relax control over and invigorate small and medium-sized state-owned enterprises, he said, adding that the Law on the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Promotion will soon be enacted.

(Xinhua News Agency March 8, 2002)