China's movie box office reaches record 9 bln USD

China's movie box office revenue rose 9 percent in 2018 to nearly 61 billion yuan (8.9 billion U.S. dollars), with its domestic films contributing over 62 percent to the market, according to the State Film Administration on Monday.

People enjoy a movie at a cinema in China. [Photo: File photo: VCG]

The number of movie screens reached over 60,000 across the country, up more than 9,300 from 2017, ranking first in the world.

Audiences were presented with domestic blockbusters this year such as the dark comedy "Dying to Survive," the comedy "Detective Chinatown 2" and the action film "Operation Red Sea," each of which grossed over 3 billion yuan at the box office.