China UnionPay sees spurt in payments amid holiday travel boom

Chinese card payment giant China UnionPay saw a rise in payments on Thursday, which marked National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival.

Payments over the China UnionPay network on Thursday exceeded 330 billion yuan (US$48.46 billion), an increase of 15.5 percent over the same day of last year.

Tours to the western region and long-distance travel became more popular during this year's eight-day holiday, according to the company.

Data showed the Tibet Autonomous Region led the country in year-on-year payment growth from Thursday to Friday, with payments over the China UnionPay network doubling for accomodation and surging by 49 percent for catering.

China UnionPay is the country's largest bank card payment processor, and UnionPay cards are accepted in more than 170 countries and regions around the world.