STORY: Duty-free shopping boom in China's resort island during summer vacation
DATELINE: Aug. 10, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:48
LOCATION: HAIKOU, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY
 
SHOTLIST:
1. various aerial shots of Haikou International Duty-Free Shopping Complex
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): XU BEI, Tourist
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): YANG SHAN, Tourist
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): YAO XINYU, Salesman, Haikou International Duty-Free Shopping Complex
 
STORYLINE:
 
With the arrival of summer holidays, south China's island province of Hainan attracts a steady stream of visitors coming to experience its charm, which lies not only in picturesque scenery, but also duty-free shopping.
 
For the Haikou International Duty-Free Shopping Complex, which opened last October in Haikou, capital of Hainan, this is a first taste of the summer vacation experience.
 
With a construction area of around 280,000 square meters, it is the world's largest stand-alone duty-free shopping mall, featuring more than 800 international and domestic brands.
 
SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): XU BEI, Tourist
"We specifically drove to this duty-free shop. Since the kids are on summer vacation, we decided to take a trip. Duty-free shopping indeed plays a significant role in our decisions to visit Hainan. The duty-free offerings are getting cheaper and more extensive, so we really enjoy our shopping spree this time."
 
SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): YANG SHAN, Tourist
"In traveling to Hainan, we've enjoyed both sightseeing and duty-free shopping. It's such a great two-in-one experience. Duty-free discounts are so substantial that goods here are even cheaper than shopping online, and their quality is guaranteed."
 
SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): YAO XINYU, Salesman, Haikou International Duty-Free Shopping Complex
"Since summer vacation began, there has been a notable increase in foot traffic from Monday to Friday, and on weekends the number of visitors jumps even further. Our daily sales have increased by about 30 to 40 percent compared to the period before the holidays."
 
With 12 duty-free shopping malls, Hainan aims to increase offshore duty-free sales to over 80 billion yuan (around 11.1 billion U.S. dollars) by the end of this year.
 
Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Haikou, China.
(XHTV)