By SPA,
Beijing : Companies suffered 67 billion Yuan (US$9.5 Billion; ¤7 billion) in damage in last week’s quake in Central China, the government said Monday.
Some 14,207 companies in Sichuan province and surrounding areas were damaged by the May 12 quake and 1,387 of their employees killed, a deputy industry minister, Xi Guohua, said at a news conference.
Independent estimates have put total losses at up to US$20 Billion after lost future output is taken into account.
The magnitude 7.9 quake killed at least 34,000 people and officials say they expect the death toll to surpass 50,000.
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