The central government has expanded a pilot scheme subsidising the purchase of electrical appliances by rural households in an attempt to improve their living standards and boost domestic consumption.
The scheme will be expanded to nine provinces from the initial three of Shandong, Henan and Sichuan. Xinhua said the new areas included Inner Mongolia, Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Hubei and Shaanxi .
Under the scheme, the government will grant a 13 per cent subsidy for rural residents to buy a list of household appliances - such as televisions, refrigerators, washing machines and freezers. The scheme was started in December last year.
The authorities have invited 155 domestic and foreign companies to take part in the bidding to supply the appliances. The China National Electronics Import and Export Corporation announced the bidding result over the weekend.
Some 122 companies won in five categories. Samsung, Panasonic, Nokia and other foreign brands were on the list.
Panasonic, Midea, TCL and another 33 brands were on the washing-machine list, while Samsung, Nokia, Motorola and 14 other brands would share the mobile-phone market.
