A market dedicated to sales of Taiwan’s commodities in the Pingtan Comprehensive Pilot Zone plans to apply for being a national 4A tourism destination, Pingtan Times reported on Sept 18.

The entrance of the Taiwan Commodity Market in Pingtan, Fujian province. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

“Tourism is one of the pillar industries in Pingtan. The market is an important part of Pingtan’s business with Taiwan, and will increase its appeal after being built into a tourism spot with more functions such as sightseeing, shopping and leisure,” said Chen Hongchun, head of the market’s business attraction department.

To make a stronger bid for a 4A tourism destination, the market will improve its support facilities, and will co-apply with other outstanding tourism spots nearby, he said.

The Taiwan Commodity Market, which opened in June 2014, is situated in Aoqian town, covering about 160,000 square meters.

The convenient traffic – about 1 km from Aoqian Passenger Terminal, a 10-min drive from downtown and the newly launched shuttle bus to Fuzhou city – has made the market more accessible and brought in more customers, according to Chen.

The market comprises 38 buildings in the Minnan folk style, divided into a duty-free zone, non-duty free zone and support function zone.

A favorable tax policy operates at the market, with tax exemptions granted by the Ministry of Finance on six categories of Taiwan goods: oil and grain products; farm products; textiles and garments; artwork; light industrial products and medicine.

The daily cap per person is 6,000 yuan ($960) and purchasing records are tracked. If the sum exceeds the threshold both customers and merchants are notified to pay the tax.