China has arrested two Taiwanese businessmen suspected of spying for Taiwan, a government spokesman said on Wednesday.

Replying to a question from a Taiwan journalist, following a report in Taiwan media, Li Weiyi, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, confirmed the arrest.

The Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait has informed the suspects' families, Li said.

Taiwan's United Daily News said on November 11 that the two had been arrested in central China's Hunan Province and and in southern Guangdong Province respectively.

The Taiwan authority declared recently that another Taiwan businessman, Gong Jinyuan, suspected of involvement in Taiwan authority leader Chen Shui-bian's secret fund case, was the subject of strict control measures on the mainland after his identity was exposed.

Li denied the Taiwan authority's allegation about Gong, saying the Taiwan media have already reported that Gong is free on the mainland.