Top firms set up shop on disputed South China Sea islandSINGAPORE -- An island city that China established in 2012 to govern disputed island chains in the South China Sea has drawn 16 of the world's 500 largest companies, Chinese media said, citing the city's deputy mayor. Major Chinese banks, such as the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and the Bank of China, have also opened branches on the island, the reports said. Sansha city was established in 2012 on the 2.1 square kilometer Woody Island in the Paracels. China lays claim to almost all of the South China Sea and rejects the findings of an international tribunal in July that invalidated those claims. Since 2012, China has built roads, a hospital, a school, water treatment plants and other facilities on the islands.

Source: The China Post November 27, 2016 16:59 UTC