China's tourism sector earned US$96b in 2005 (Agencies) Updated: 2006-01-28 08:26 China's tourism sector earned US$96 billion last
year and will likely grow by 8 percent this year as the country climbs up the
ladder of top travel destinations, Xinhua news agency reported.
China received 120 million overseas visitors in 2005 and saw 31 million
outbound travelers, said the report, adding that travelers from Hong Kong, Macau
and Taiwan are considered overseas visitors.
Income from domestic tourism reached 528.6 billion yuan (US$66 billion) while
earnings from international travelers surpassed US$29.3 billion, Xinhua cited
the China National Tourism Administration as saying.
China's tourism industry has been developing rapidly in recent years with the
country's inbound, outbound and domestic tourist markets increasing, according
to the report.
Shao Qiwei, administrative director of China's tourism, predicted the country
would see 130 million inbound travelers this year, up eight percent from the
previous year.
The industry is expected to grow by eight percent a year until the end of the
decade, cited the news agency.
In 2003 China received 91 million inbound travelers, 11 million of them
foreign tourists.
China is expected to have 64 million foreign tourists in 2010, which is
expected to put it in third place among world tourist destinations for that
year, according to Chinese media.
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