BEIJING (Bloomberg) — China axed some taxes for Taiwanese shipping lines to encourage more direct services to the mainland as relations between the two sides improve.

The exemption took effect from December 15, 2008, according to a statement posted on China's Ministry of Finance Web site yesterday.

China and Taiwan have boosted transport links, including adding direct flights, as cross-straits tensions ease. The two sides have been ruled separately since the end of a civil war in 1949.