The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council is working with banks and local governments to help mainland-based Taiwan firms survive the financial crisis, its spokeswoman Fan Liqing said yesterday.

The 130-billion-yuan ($18.8 billion) support package that was promised at the 4th cross-Straits Economics and Trade Culture Forum in December is "on its way", she said.

Between December and January, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China extended more than 4 billion yuan in credit to 500 Taiwan firms on the mainland, she said.