(Yicai Global) Feb. 22 -- Nearly 90 percent of the Fortune 500 companies in Shanghai have resumed work amid the fight against the novel coronavirus pneumonia, the city's commerce commission said at a press conference today.

Among Shanghai's 679 key foreign companies monitored, 93 percent of the regional headquarters of multinational companies and 87 percent of foreign research and development centers have resumed operations, according to data released by the Shanghai Association of Foreign Investment.

Ninety percent of service industry companies, 70 percent of manufacturing firms and 80 percent of those in the integrated circuit, biological and pharmaceutical industries have returned to normal work, the data also show.

Foreign companies that have restarted their operations have all done so in strict accordance with the requirements of epidemic prevention and have taken various protective measures, said Liu Min, deputy director of the commission.

The commission has thus far helped to allocate CNY12.3 billion (USD1.75 billion) in financing for local foreign-funded companies in need during the coronavirus outbreak, Liu added.

Editor: Ben Armour