Visitor numbers to HK break record in H1

Visitor arrivals to Hong Kong in the first half of this year reached a record 16.86 million, rising 23 percent compare with the same period last year, the city's Tourism Board said Tuesday.

The mainland's positive economic outlook has boosted travel and consumption sentiments, bringing 10.48 million mainland visitor arrivals to Hong Kong in the first six months - the first time the figure has topped 10 million.

During the same period, the cumulative arrivals among all markets also saw the greatest year-on-year growth of 26.9 percent.

Board chairman James Tien said the recovering global economy has helped to boost travel propensity and sustain visitor arrivals' growth momentum this year.

"We saw not just significant year-on-year growth, but also a leap upward from the 2008 level in many markets," Tien said.

The board expects the positive trend will continue into this summer and visitor numbers will grow 20 percent to 25 percent.