China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

In a major milestone of the film industry, China's box office revenue for 2025, including pre-sales, has officially exceeded 10 billion yuan (over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars), surpassing those of North America.

Latest data has showed that the box office revenue has hit 10.12 billion yuan, placing China at the top of the global box office rankings for this year.

As of 10:40 on Tuesday, the box office for the Spring Festival holiday period reached a new historical record of 8.7 billion yuan (over 1.21 billion U.S. dollars), with cinemas across the nation receiving over 170 million visits.

The number exceeding the figure registered in the 2024 Spring Festival, setting a new record for audience attendance during the Spring Festival in Chinese cinema history.

The week-long holiday, which runs from Jan. 28 to Feb. 4, is traditionally the most lucrative period for China's film industry, with audiences flocking to theaters to watch new releases.

Meanwhile, the daily box office has exceeded 1 billion yuan for six consecutive days since Jan. 29 when six films targeting the holiday season were released.

Leading the pack are the animated fantasy "Ne Zha 2," Detective Chinatown 1900" and "Creation of the Gods II: Demon Force".

The historic high box office of the Spring Festival holiday reflects the high-quality development in China's domestic films and highlights the strong recognition of Chinese traditional culture among audiences.

It also indicates vibrant consumption during the holiday as well as the consumers' confidence in domestic productions.

In addition, innovative marketing strategies have enabled Spring Festival films to break new ground ahead of schedule.

This year, the promotional methods for films during the Spring Festival have evolved from traditional events including theater previews to a diversified approach that includes short video promotions and social media interactions, igniting excitement and expectations for the films.

Moreover, special effects have become the "invisible infrastructure" of the film industry, with five out of the six blockbusters targeting the holiday season featuring advanced special effects.

Data shows that films with special visual effects have comprised about half of the total offerings during the Spring Festival seasons of the past five years.

The trend highlights how special effects have infiltrated various types of films, becoming integral to the industry.

Traditional cultural themes have also gained popularity among this year's Spring Festival films, as half of the films released during the festival are rooted in traditional Chinese culture, including ancient Chinese history, mythology, and martial arts culture.

Additionally, almost every film for this Spring Festival has been coupled with related tourist attractions, which have seen a marked increase in tourist visits as a result.

China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

China's 2025 box office tops 10 billion yuan, surpassing North America

The Langqi passenger terminal in Fuzhou of east China's Fujian Province officially commenced a new departure tax refund initiative for travelers heading on the "mini three links" route on Tuesday, with streamlined measures boosting the efficiency of tax refunds and speeding up customs clearance procedures.

The "mini three links" refers to direct trade, postal and transport services launched in 2001 between Fujian Province and the Taiwan-administered Kinmen and Matsu islands. It serves as a vital, convenient cross-strait passage for personnel exchanges and economic and trade interactions between the Chinese mainland and the Taiwan region.

At the heart of the upgraded service is an optimized procedure dubbed the "one document, one bag, one code" process, a simple and streamlined model designed to shorten clearance time for outbound passengers.

Under this framework, travelers who make purchases at designated pilot tax refund stores can have their qualified goods consolidated into a single sealed bag, with all corresponding tax refund information integrated into a unique QR code printed on the tax refund application form.

When departing via the Langqi passenger terminal, on-site customs officers only need to scan the QR code to retrieve and verify the details relating to the applicant's tax refund application. Travelers can then get quick customs clearance once the information is confirmed to be accurate, with no requirement to open their sealed shopping bags for repeated inspections.

Departure tax refund services launched at "mini three links" port in Fuzhou