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.