Anyone planning to set up a business in China is about to have some good news from the country's top legislature: it is going lower the threshold for registering a company.

This is one of the big changes included in the draft amendment to China's company law, which has now passed a second review by the Standing Committee of the 10th National People's Congress, the Beijing-based Legal Daily reported Tuesday.

Other main changes are directed at the regulations concerning the minimum registered capital required for the establishment of a Limited Liability Company or a Joint Stock Limited Company.

The expected changes also include loosening the restrictions on capital forms and companies' investment activities.

China's current company law was issued in 1993 and after that the only changes have been some minor amendments in 1999.

But there is now a rising demand for the law to be changed to make it more suited to the rapid development of China's market economy.

The amendment this year is aimed at encouraging the flow of capital into the market to boost China's economic growth and market development.

The newspaper said the legislature is expected to finish the review process and be released by the end of the year.

(CRI September 13, 2005)