Crackdown on fakes sees gains

Increased efforts by Chinese customs to protect intellectual property rights (IPR) last year benefited 5,776 cases involving 34 countries, regions and international organizations, a senior customs official said yesterday.

Last year, Chinese customs seized more than 333 million pieces of goods involving IPR infringement, valued at close to 439 million yuan ($63 million) - up 83 and 116 percent year on year, respectively - Gong Zheng, vice-minister of the General Administration of Customs, told a press conference.

Most of the goods were found in the United States, United Kingdom, China, Japan, France, Greece, Germany and the Netherlands.