Online trade service joins forces with China

The Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston, welcomed today's announcement that Melbourne-based online trade information service-TradeData-has entered a joint venture with the State Information Centre of China.

'TradeData has gone from strength-to-strength since it was launched in 1995, with seed funding through the Commonwealth Government's Information Technology Online (ITOL) program,' Senator Alston said.

TradeData provides online information about quantities and unit price of products imported and exported by countries, including Australia, the United States, most of Europe, South Korea and Indonesia.

'This is the first time access has been granted to information on the many products entering and leaving China-it will be extremely useful for Chinese industries and all those doing business with China,' Senator Alston said.

'This announcement demonstrates that a global scale solution can be delivered from Australia, and shows how successful TradeData has been at developing new and innovative online solutions to improve business competitiveness-something the Government is keen to encourage.

'The Government has developed a range of programs to promote development of the Australian information technology and communications sector, including the ITOL program, part of the Investing for Growth initiative, and the $78 million Building on IT Strengths (BITS) incubator program, funded by the partial sale of Telstra.

'Australia is now well placed to play a significant role in the global information economy and the Government will continue to build on its policies and initiatives to ensure that all Australians benefit from new technologies.'

Further enquiries can be made via www.australia.org.nz

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