Holiday consumption in Zhejiang experiences boom

Latest data from the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Commerce shows that sales and foot traffic surged 26.95 percent and 36.27 percent year-on-year respectively in the province's department stores, dining sites, and hotels, between May 1 and 4.

During the five-day May Day holiday, Golden Cross Street, a busy commercial zone located in the Qianjiang New City in the provincial capital of Hangzhou, saw around 10 retail brands opening their first flagship stores in the city and beyond.

The three major shopping malls in the zone, The Mixc, Raffles City, and PAFC Living, had a combined turnover of 86.62 million yuan ($13.37 million) during the holiday, soaring 54 percent from the previous year.

The 5,767 surveyed enterprises in Hangzhou's West Lake scenic area had a total turnover of 157 million yuan in the period, up 50.5 percent year-on-year. Louwailou, a famed Huangzhou-style cuisine brand, saw a 164.3 percent and 161.5 percent year-on-year rise in turnover and foot traffic for its chain restaurants during the period.

The province's rural tourism also thrived during the holiday. Deqing county, which is home to the popular tourist destination of Mogan Mountain, received 740,000 visits and raked in a tourism revenue of 1.1 billion yuan from May 1 to 5.