Year of the Monkey proves prosperous as hit films and holidays boost consumption during China’s ‘Golden Week’

Holiday consumption on the mainland over the Lunar New Year period increased significantly this year, as tourism boomed and cinemas posted box-office increases.

The Ministry of Commerce said on Saturday that retailers and catering firms had reported revenues of 754 billion yuan (HK$892 billion) during the February 7 to 13 Golden Week holiday – a growth of 11.2 per cent over last year’s Golden Week.

Millions of mainlanders take time off work to travel and generally spend more than usual during the break.

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Sales in major jewellery stores in Hubei (湖北) province grew 22 per cent, with monkey-themed accessories proving popular, state-run Xinhua reported.

Sales at 27 restaurants taking part in a survey in Chongqing (重慶) increased 16.6 per cent to 8.37 million yuan during the period, with some of the restaurants cooperating with online platforms to boost sales.

Food prices increased slightly, said the ministry, with vegetable prices increasing about 2.5 per cent over the holiday.