CHINA has begun laying a US$500 million fiber optic cable to the United States that will be vital in meeting booming Internet traffic between the two nations, the China Daily reported Tuesday.

The “Trans Pacific Express” cable will directly link the Chinese mainland with South Korea, Taiwan and the United States, greatly increasing Internet speeds between the regions.

Work laying the cable began in the eastern coastal city of Qingdao on Monday, with completion of the trans-oceanic line scheduled for July next year, the paper said.

The terminus of the cable that would also be able to transmit high definition television signals during the Beijing 2008 Olympics would be in Nedonna Beach, Oregon, it added.

The new cable is expected to help avoid breakdowns in trans-oceanic Internet traffic similar to what occurred following a 7.1-magnitude earthquake that struck the seabed near Taiwan on Dec. 26, snapping undersea telecom cables. Investment in the new cable include U.S. telecom giant Verizon Communications, Chinese mainland companies China Telecom, China Netcom and China Unicom, as well as Korea Telecom and Chunghwa Telecom from Taiwan, reports said.

(SD-Agencies)