China will cut the price of 4G services, which have officially started in several cities in the country, the head of the industry ministry said on Monday.

"The price of 4G has become the focus of consumers," Miao Wei, the Minister of Industry and Information Technology, said yesterday in Beijing. "We are going to encourage market competition and push the price down."

But the 4G price will be market-oriented and decided by mobile operators such as China Mobile, Miao added.

China issued the long-awaited 4G services at the beginning of this month. The technology offers handset users high-speed data service that's 20-50 times faster than 3G service now.

China Mobile, the world's top telco, aims to establish 500,000 base stations and provide 4G services in 340 cities nationwide.

In Shanghai, users can now apply for 4G services which will be available by the end of this month, covering the whole Inner Ring Road area.