The 2008 China Fashion Week came to a close in Beijing on Monday. The event drew fifty designers from over twenty countries to show their newest collections. It also featured a fashion design competition for young designers from around the globe. The event was a breath of fresh air for China's burgeoning fashion industry.

Chinese elements are chic in the recent fashion scene around the globe. And domestic designers, obviously have a natural advantage in interpreting the theme.

Wang Qing, president of China Fashion Week, said, "Currently, ideas about China are favored by the whole industry. Many world renowned fashion designers have come up with their own China series."

Eleven years running, China Fashion Week has evolved from a small-scale occasion, with just three shows, to an influential event, hosting thirty fashion shows in total.

A designer said, "China's fashion market is developing rapidly, and it is merging with the world trend. I'm very excited about the opportunity to attend the event. What I like most is this event gave much effort to promote new designers."

The young designer competition gave many new talents a chance to be recognized. This year, the competition attracted young designers from sixteen countries.

Now over 100-thousand people are working in Chinese fashion design. Nearly thirty thousand students majoring in fashion design graduate every year from nearly two hundred colleges or institutes. They have become the new force pushing traditional garment making in China to upscale fashion.

(CCTV April 2,2008)