The number of overseas tourists who visited Beijing in the first half of the year rose 11 percent on last year to 1.97 million, the municipal statistics bureau said on Thursday.

 

The capital hosted 1.7 million foreign tourists in the first six months, up 11.9 from the same period last year, the bureau said.

 

Japan, the United States and the Republic of Korea are currently the top three sources of the city's foreign tourists.

 

Beijing also hosted 260,000 tourists from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, an increase of 5.6 percent.

 

Tourism has boomed in Beijing in recent years as the 2008 Olympic Games approaches. Last year, it hosted 3.9 million overseas tourists, up 7.5 percent from 2005, according to the Beijing Tourism Bureau.

 

(Xinhua News Agency July 27, 2007)