Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced Friday the total expenditure associated to inbound tourism in Hong Kong in 2005 registered double-digit growth of 14.1 percent compared with 2004, reaching a total of HK$105.66 billion (US$13.55 billion).

The tourism expenditure covers visitor spending on goods and services while in Hong Kong, including accommodation, shopping, meals, entertainment and transport, as well as receipts by Hong Kong-based carriers for inbound and outbound air, land and sea transportation.

The HKTB has also said the tourist arrivals to Hong Kong in February reached 1.93 million, 10.9 percent higher than in the same month in 2005. Cumulative arrivals for January and February were 4.12 million, up 13.3 percent over last year's same period.

The Chinese mainland provided 1.14 million arrivals in February, 9.6 percent more than last year's same period.

The individual Visit Scheme arrivals in February numbered 574, 405, accounting for 50.3 percent of all Chinese mainland visitors.

Xinhua News, March 25, 2006