Wrist watch imports soaring with Shanghai port

Wrist watches imported via Shanghai port were worth a total of 220 million US dollars last year, nearly 50 percent more than in 2003, sources from the local customs house said.

The watches imported into Shanghai port made up three fourths of the national total.

According to the sources, 97 percent of Shanghai port's total 2004 watch import, worth 215 million US dollars, were imported from Switzerland, up 48 percent from a year ago. The imported watches include 556 top-brands with a value exceeding 10,000 US dollars each, four times the level of 2003.

Customs experts believe tariff cuts and the phasing out of watch import quotas were two favorable conditions for more of the world's famous timepieces to enter China in the past year.