Mainland banks will provide financing support valued at 130 billion yuan (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) to Taiwan-funded companies that operate on the mainland over the next three years to help them tide over the economic downturn, a mainland official told reporters here Wednesday.

Fan Liqing, the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman, said the funds will be channeled through major banks including the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, which had extended more than 4 billion yuan in credit to more than 500 Taiwan-funded companies as of January.

The government will also hold meetings where banks and companies can discuss the financing support. The next meetings are scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces, respectively, Fan said.

Source: Xinhua