UK retailers look forward to Chinese high spenders

The Chinese new year starting today is a time now for travel abroad, and the festivities this year come with Golden Week, one of the biggest holiday periods for Chinese tourists.

British shops would be hoping for a repeat of a sales uptick seen across the UK last year, fuelled by Golden Week, as Chinese visitors flocked to Britain looking for luxury handbags, jewellery and watches.

According to figures from tax-free shopping business Global Blue, in the UK, Chinese shoppers' average tax-free transaction was £712, with Chinese tourists accounting for a fifth of all tax-free sales across the UK, an increase of 31 per cent on the previous year.

The Telegraph is campaigning for relaxation of visa rules for Chinese visitors and businesses warn that Chinese tourists, who spend an average of £1,600 per visit, were turning away from UK to other European countries with easier entry rules, which was hurting the economy to the tune of £1.2 billion a year.

The Home Office said it was committed to making visa rules simple.

Spending across London's shops and tourist attractions by Chinese shoppers is set for a new record next week.