In the first three months of the year Qingdao customs seized 141 shipments of counterfeited goods destined for both import and export.

The illegal cargo violated trademarks owned by 65 companies from 14 countries, said the customs office.

The largest proportion were machine bearings and textiles.

The surge in seized goods is closely related to the booming export-oriented processing industry in the province and neighboring areas, according to customs officials.

The officials also noted that the office itself started more than 99 percent of the investigations into illegal goods, a statistic that shows weak awareness among legitimate trademark owners.

(Source: China Daily)