 |
National Day Holiday Sparks Spending Spree in China
China's seven-day National Day holiday has ignited a spending spree among consumers which economists say will benefit the economy overall -- especially the tourism and commerce sectors.
In south China's Guangdong Province, Baiyun Airport in the provincial capital of Guangzhou handled 463 flights on Monday alone, beating the record set during this year's Spring Festival holiday.
It is estimated that nearly 400,000 people in total will pass through the airport during the October 1-7 season. Up to 200,000 will be tourists departing China for domestic travel, 40 percent over the same period last year.
This year's hottest flight destinations are the cities of Huangshan, Haikou, Dalian, Qingdao, Guilin and Xi'an, airline sources said.
Hong Kong is also a popular travel spot. The immigration authority said more than 200,000 tourists entered Hong Kong from Shenzhen on Monday, among them 300 were tourists groups.
To cope with the huge tide of passengers, all Chinese airlines have arranged additional flights, including nearly 200 chartered flights.
Baiyun Airport will be operating around the clock during the holiday.
Guangzhou's stores and restaurants are also reaping from the holiday economy. The restaurants are filled with so many customers that it's hard to find a seat without a reservation.
Major shopping centers such as the Guangzhou Department Store have all reported soaring turnover.
Clothes and jewelry are especially selling well. Even the moon cake market, tarnished by media reports that out-of-date cakes were being recycled by a namebrand producer in Nanjing, reported aggressive sales.
In the remote Tibet Autonomous Region, more and more people are also traveling by air.
Danba Qoita, a Buddhist Lama from Qamdo in eastern Tibet, said he was nervous and excited to get on an airplane for the first time, as he boarded a flight to Beijing.
"I have dreamed of seeing the Yonghe Temple in Beijing for a long time, and now it has come true," he said.
Statistics by the regional government show that the disposable income of residents in Lhasa, capital of Tibet, rose 15 percent in the first half of the year to 4,000 yuan, while their spending on transportation, telecommunications, entertainment and education soared by over 34 percent.
In This Section
|