China sees 12.9 percent surge in cross-border travel during Dragon Boat Festival holiday

China's cross-border travel jumped 12.9 percent during the just-concluded three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday to 6.667 million passenger trips, the National Immigration Administration said Tuesday.

The Dragon Boat Festival, known as the Duanwu Festival in Chinese, falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, which was June 19 this year. The public holiday for the festival was from June 19-21.

The peak of the cross-border travels came on June 20, the second day of the holiday, when 2.308 million crossings were processed, the highest single-day total. Foreign entries and exits reached 777,000, marking a 23.3 percent year-on-year increase.

At Beijing's ports, authorities processed 205,000 passenger trips over the holiday, up 15.2 percent from the previous year's corresponding period. More than 22,000 foreign nationals entered under visa-free or temporary entry permit policies, accounting for 66 percent of all foreign arrivals in the Chinese capital.

Shanghai's cruise ports remained a popular choice for holidaymakers. Multiple cruise ships hosted Duanwu Festival-themed activities such as holiday food making and themed parties. During the holiday, Shanghai authorities processed four cruise vessel entries and exits and 20,000 passenger trips, a 53.2 percent increase over last year's corresponding holiday season.

One traveler from Shanghai said, "The cruise itinerary and the timing of its voyage during the Dragon Boat Festival just fit our needs perfectly for a short getaway, so we booked it."

Cross-border travel from Hong Kong and Macao to neighboring Guangdong Province also remained brisk, with residents heading to the mainland to watch dragon boat races and enjoy local cuisine. The Zhuhai General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection in Guangding processed about 2.03 million crossings via the Gongbei, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and Hengqin ports during the holiday, up 4 percent year on year.

China sees 12.9 percent surge in cross-border travel during Dragon Boat Festival holiday

Tokyo stocks tumbled on Tuesday, with the benchmark Nikkei index falling below the 70,000 mark after snapping an eight-session winning streak, as investors took profits amid concerns over an overheated market.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 2,565.58 points, or 3.55 percent, from Monday at 69,788.38.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 104.67 points, or 2.56 percent, lower at 3,990.38.

On the top-tier Prime Market, nonferrous metal, electric appliance, and information and communication issues were notable decliners.

The Nikkei briefly traded higher at the open but soon reversed course as selling pressure mounted after the index had surged more than 8,100 points during its eight-session advance.

Heavyweight technology shares, particularly recent gainers such as Kioxia Holdings Corp. and Tokyo Electron, led the decline. The selloff was partly cushioned as dip-buyers stepped in.

Losses extended in the afternoon, with the Nikkei diving more than 3 percent toward the close.

Tokyo stocks slump on overheating concerns