Foreign Tourists In Beijing Spend US$4 Billion In 2006

BEIJING, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- Beijing received 3.9 million foreign tourists last year with more than 7.5 per cent of them spent a total of US$4 billion (US$1=RM3.50) , a spokesman of the Municipal Tourism Administration Fang Zehua said Thursday.

The boom can be attributed to Beijing's promotion in major source countries, he said adding that the record showed tourists spend US$1,033 each.

Tourists from Japan, the United States and the Republic of Korea accounted for about 40 per cent of the total number, Xinhua news agency reported Thursday.

Overseas arrivals from Russia, Sweden and Australia also saw a rapid increase, Fang said.

Some 132 million Chinese visitors from other parts of the country came to the capital and spent US$19.1 billion, 14 per cent higher than in 2005, he added.