Huaxi sees tourism as driver for future growth

Huaxi, the most affluent village in China, has eyed tourism as the next leading engine for its economy, a month after the death of its legendary leader.

Sun Haiyan, deputy Party chief, said on Wednesday that the village in Jiangsu province's Jiangyin city attracted more than 2 million tourists in 2012, including 100,000 from overseas, and generated 600 million yuan ($97.2 million) in revenue.

"The revenue figure is not so much if you consider it in proportion with our village's gross income of 50 billion yuan last year, but tourism is definitely a potential driving force for our economy," he said.