China bets on duty-free paradise to keep luxury spenders at home

Sanya, China

CHINA'S efforts to lift local consumption, spur domestic tourism and keep within its borders citizens who splurge in Milan or Seoul have spawned a duty-free paradise on the southern island of Hainan that it hopes will satisfy a lust for luxury.

Firms such as the owner of the world's biggest duty-free shopping centre, China International Travel Service Corp Ltd (CITS), are capitalising on a relaxation of duty-free spending restrictions in February, with HNA Group Co Ltd reporting a 160 per cent surge in sales.

Government initiatives, including 19 more duty-free shops nationwide, come as sales of the types of luxury goods that line duty-free sh…