BEIJING, May 6 -- The number of electric bicycles has exceeded 350 million in China, where a total of 42.28 million electric bicycles were manufactured last year.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, over 20 percent of new electric bicycles produced by the country's major brands are lithium battery-powered models.

From Nov. 1 this year, a set of compulsory safety standards for lithium batteries used on electric bicycles will become effective nationwide, said the ministry, which drafted the standards.

Safe and high-efficiency lithium battery technology has been identified as a key area for the improvement of the country's bicycle industry in recent years.