Annual HK book fair attracts great interest
Updated at 6.00pm: The territory's largest book fair - The 15th Hong Kong Book Fair - began on Wednesday, attracting some 3,200 book lovers in its first hour, Mingpao reported.
The newspaper said this was six per cent more than at the same time last year. Some people began queueing at 7am for the fair - which opened at 9am. It is being held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
The six-day annual event runs from July 21 to 26. It has already attracted 367 publishers - displaying a great variety of different books and publications. This is a record number of publishers attending the fair. Last year, 325 attended.
The book fair also offers specially-priced tickets to solo travellers from the mainland. These cost $5, while normal ticket prices are $20.
Some visitors to the fair said they had brought thousands of dollars to spend on books, Mingpao reported.
One book stall owner told local television that sales of books on Hong Kong politics had fallen.
The fair's organiser, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, estimated the event could attract 400,000 visitors. There were 427,681 visitors last year.
