By BEIJINGSINGAPORE, Feb 16 Reuters Cinema stocks jumped in Hong Kong on Tuesday as Chinese box offices set a revenue record of over 6 billion yuan 929.63 million for the week beginning Feb. 11, following a moviegoing rush at the start of Lunar New Year holiday break.
The figure, from data compiled by online ticketing platform Maoyan Entertainment, surpassed the previous weeklong record of 5.9 billion yuan set in the same holiday period in 2019, and represents a full recovery from a coronavirusinduced slump last year.
To preempt the spread of the virus following a resurgence in cases in January, local authorities have discouraged people from travelling to their home towns for the holiday. Some authorities such as in Shanghai even provided free movie tickets to encourage people stay put for their holiday entertainment.
Cinemas in Beijing opened as early as 8 am and as late as 3 am to attract younger customers, while limiting occupancy to half of seats available to promote social distancing, reported Chinas official Peoples Daily.
The 6 billion yuan record reflects robust momentum of Chinas film industry, the newspaper said on social media platform Weibo on Monday.
Cinema stocks jumped on Tuesday as Hong Kong kicked off its first trading day after the holiday break.
Shares of IMAX China Holding Inc soared as much as 90 in the morning session, while Alibaba Pictures Group Ltd and Maoyan Entertainment both rose by more than 20.
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