Shanghai's cultural and tourism authorities are enhancing financial support to help enterprises recover from the novel coronavirus disease outbreak.

A total of 10 billion yuan (US$1.41 billion) in loans will be distributed to the city's cultural and travel companies, the Shanghai Culture and Tourism Administration said on Monday.

Shanghai has 1,782 tourism companies, and about 90 percent are small or medium-sized, according to the administration.

In total, 162 culture and tourism companies have expressed demand for credit and loans totaling 2.65 billion yuan, it said. The demand is expected to increase further with more companies resuming operations.

On the other hand, Hainan’s provincial government recently announced a CNY150 million (US$21.2 million) rejuvenation plan for the island’s beleaguered tourism industry with duty-free shopping at the heart of its plans.