A total of 1.08 million local farmers, or 28 percent of the rural population, in this north China port city went on sightseeing trips to the downtown area or went on out-of-town tours during the week-long May Day holiday.

Almost 160,000 of the rural travelers visited neighboring Beijing, the nation's capital. Long-distance buses was the main means of transport for 62.5 of them, while the train carried 25 percent.

Some local economists attributed the rise in the number of local farmers making holiday tours to the rapid development of the local economy. Last year, the average per-capita income was 4,370 yuan for the local rural population.

(Eastday.com.cn 05/17/2001)