The International Grand Bazaar in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, reopened Wednesday for the first time since the deadly riot in the city on July 5.

Almost half of the 4,000 shops and booths in the bazaar in Urumqi opened at around 11 AM, said Wuxkur Yunus, deputy manager of the bazaar.

They would close for the day at 6 PM, two- and- a- half hours earlier than usual, he said.

"US fastfood chain stores Kentucky Fried Chicken and Carrefour stores in the bazaar are scheduled to reopen tomorrow when 80 percent of the businesses will be open to customers," said Wuxkur.

Security was tightened as the bazaar administration doubled the number of security guards to 70, and knives were banned from sale, he said.

"So far, we have only received hundreds of customers. Before the riot, we had more than 100,000 clients everyday," he said.

The manager estimated that each of the shops suffered an average daily loss of 2,000 yuan (US$285.7) during the 16-day closure.

The banquet grand theatre in the bazaar, a major attraction where visitors can enjoy ethnic cuisine along with ethnic singing and dancing, also suffered from the closure.

"We lost 200,000 yuan each day," said Wuxkur, who is also manager of the banquet grand theatre.

The bazaar was closed on July 6 after the riot in Urumqi that left 197 people dead and more than 1,600 others injured. Many shops were looted and vandalized.

The bazaar is a 100,000-square-meter commercial complex with a strong Islamic architectural influence that includes a banquet hall, a food court, a sightseeing tower, an open-air stage and a mosque.

(Xinhua News Agency July 22, 2009)