London, Sep 24 (IANS): Authorities in China have lifted the ban on Facebook, Twitter, and the New York Times sites in the Shanghai Free-trade Zone so that foreign companies feel more at home, The Independent reported.

"In order to welcome foreign companies to invest and to let foreigners live and work happily in the free-trade zone, we must think about how we can make them feel like at home," reported the South China Morning Post citing government sources.

"If they can’t get onto Facebook or read The New York Times, they may naturally wonder how special the free-trade zone is compared with the rest of China.”

The Shanghai free-trade zone has been recently approved by Chinese authorities and will be formally launched Sep 29.

Spanning an area of about 29 sq km, it is one of the more than a dozen free trade zones -- specially designated areas within China with relaxed economic and government policies -- aimed to encourage foreign investment.