A few days ago when Fujian first forecast the approach of Kaemi, a businessman came to the Fuzhou Kaitong Trademark Agency to enquire about registering Kaemi as a trademark, said agency chief Zheng Yi.

As the tropical storm came nearer and nearer, more and more business people in Fuzhou, capital of Fujian Province, came to his agency for Kaemi registrations, Zheng said.

"The names of typhoons are always well known and enjoy great popularity, so companies can save money on advertising if they usea typhoon name as a trademark," he said.

In addition, trademark registration costs little in China and is valid for 10 years after registration. Given their expectations about the future benefits of such a trademark, a number of business people and individuals were keen to register Kaemi as a trademark, he said.

According to Zheng, the registration fee for a trademark in China is only 1,000 yuan (125 U.S. dollars), and even if a trademark agency charges a fee, the total cost is no more than 2,000 yuan.

Typhoon Kaemi, meaning "ant" in Korean, hit land at Jinjiang City of Fujian at 3:50 p.m. Tuesday, said the provincial meteorological observatory.

The eye of the typhoon had a wind velocity of 33 meters per second when it reached land, said the observatory.

Before Kaemi arrived, more than 640,000 people in Fujian, including 310,000 on the sea, were evacuated to safe places, according to the latest statistics from the provincial flood control authorities.

The typhoon brought rainstorms to southern coastal areas of the province on Tuesday. Heavy rainfall of 50 to 105 millimeters also hit many other counties or cities in Fujian, according to flood control sources.

Over 44,000 shipping vessels returned to harbor in Fujian before the arrival of Typhoon Kaemi.

By 3 p.m. Tuesday, 27 flights had been cancelled or delayed at Fuzhou airport, the provincial capital, with heavy rain lashing the city before the typhoon arrived.