(Yicai) Jan. 2 -- China's cinema ticket sales set a new record during the three-day New Year’s Day break, grossing CNY1.5 billion (USD210.6 million), with box office favourite Shining for One Thing accounting for 40 percent of this.

The blockbuster produced by streaming platform iQiyi raked in CNY605 million (USD84.9 million) from Dec. 30, 2023 to 9 p.m. on Jan. 1, the most ever over the period, according to ticket tracking platform Dengta Professional.

Shining for One Thing is Beijing-based iQiyi’s first movie to gross over CNY100 million and is also being distributed by Huayi Brothers Media and Hengdian Entertainment.

Comedy Johnny Keep Walking!, produced by China Film and Hengdian Entertainment, ranked second at CNY231 million (USD32.5 million). And action thriller Goldfinger came third with CNY214 million.

There were 1.4 million screenings on New Year’s Day itself, a new high, attracting almost 36.2 million moviegoers, according to ticketing platform Maoyan Entertainment.

Hong Kong films continued to stage a comeback over the New Year's Day break, Sun Jiashan, an associate researcher at the Central Academy of Culture and Tourism Administration, told Yicai.

The movie market will now quieten down until the week-long Lunar New Year holiday early next month.

Editor: Kim Taylor