'Guzi' drives spending among young people in Shanghai

The growing popularity of "Guzi", a Chinese term for merchandise linked to anime, games and other pop culture, is emerging as a new consumption driver, drawing up to 1 million young visitors to the Shanghai Summer International Consumption Season, according to official sources.

As of August 4, nearly 900,000 visits had been recorded at the city's three major ACGN (animation, comics, games and novels) events, namely China International Cartoon & Game Expo (CCG Expo), Bilibili World, and China Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference (China Joy), according to the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, citing data compiled since the second Shanghai International Game Animation Festival kicked off on June 29.

Hotel bookings in Shanghai soared 126 percent during the three-day Bilibili World event in July. Hotels within 5 kilometers of the venue, Shanghai's National Exhibition and Convention Center, saw bookings jump 600 percent. The event also drove a 213 percent increase in orders for cosplay and related services, with transaction value rising 340 percent.

Major participants in China Joy generated around 709 million yuan ($105.12 million) in food, retail, accommodation, transportation and other sales.

Ma Tan in Shanghai contributed to this story.