China's National Development and Reform Commission has approved five new companies to invest in mobile phone production. The companies are Shenzhen Huawei, Qingdao Hisense, Dalian Daxian Pantech, Ningbo Aux and Jiangsu Gaotong.

They will have a combined annual production capacity of 11 million handsets. This is the first batch of companies to get licences under the new rules introduced last month to standardise the process for approving investment in mobile phone equipment manufacturing.