China's box office tops 1 billion yuan in 11 days

China's box office revenue hit the one-billion-yuan (about 136 million U.S. dollars) mark just 11 days into the new year, according to box office data tracker Dengta.

The data show that, including pre-sale tickets, the country's box office revenue had exceeded one billion yuan by Saturday afternoon

Domestic suspense movie Octopus with Broken Arms, domestic feature film Big World and domestic comedy Honey Money Phony dominated the top three spots on the monthly box office chart in January so far.

In 2024, China's box office revenue reached over 42.5 billion yuan (about 5.91 billion U.S. dollars), according to data from the China Film Administration.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Wednesday that Seoul firmly adheres to the one-China principle, in comments made ahead of his upcoming state visit to China.

The remarks were made in an interview with China Media Group (CMG). The visit is scheduled for Jan 4–7.

"The consensus reached between governments of the Republic of Korea and China when diplomatic relations were established continues to be the fundamental principle governing our relations, and its effectiveness remains steadfast. I want to clearly state that the ROK has always adhered to the one-China principle. Maintaining peace and stability in regional matters, including in Northeast Asia and concerning the Taiwan issue, holds significant importance to us," said Lee.

"The foundational relationship between the ROK and China was established on a very principled and fundamental basis from the beginning. It is clear that the ROK government has always adhered to this position and has never wavered from it. I believe that the sound development of ROK-China relations depends on both sides fully respecting each other's core interests and being mutually tolerant of each other's positions. In this context, we will, as always, uphold the one-China principle as the Taiwan issue is China's most fundamental concern," he said.