China will give favorable tax treatment to companies established in poor areas of the country's northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from 2010 to 2020, the Ministry of Finance said.

The poor areas include the southern regions of Xinjiang, border cities and counties, as well as national priority poverty alleviation and development counties, the ministry said in a statement on its website.

Companies set up in those poor areas will be exempt from corporate income taxes during the first two years since their establishment. The government will levy only half of corporate taxes on them during the following three years, the statement said.

The move will help push forward Xinjiang's leapfrog development and maintain long-term stability.