This Day, That Year

Item from Feb 3, 1999, in China Daily: China's largest exterior wall advertisement board is located on a 26-story office building in the western part of the Shanghai People's Square. The advertisement carries four pictures of Coca-Cola covering a record area of 8,800 square meters.

The Chinese middle class population hit 109 million as of October, outnumbering the 92 million in the US, according to the latest report on global wealth by financial services group Credit Suisse.

The huge numbers have been luring many foreign advertising groups to make their mark in the rapidly urbanizing areas across China.