July 21 (Xinhua) -- China earned 7.847 billion U.S. dollars in foreign currency from overseas tourists in the first half of this year, up 18.54 percent on a yearly basis.

According to latest statistics from the China National Tourism Administration, a total of 40.14 million overseas tourists visited China in the six-month period, a rise of 15.72 percent.

The number of tourists from foreign countries, Macao, and Taiwan increased by more than 20 percent.

In the first half of this year, the number of tourists from each continent increased at a double-digit rate; the hikes for Asian and European tourists reached 24.4 percent and 21.14 percent respectively.

Among the 15 major sources of overseas tourists for China's tourism industry, 11 reported a double-digit increase in the number of tourists to China; the number of visitors from the Republic of Korea increased more than 40 percent; and the figures for both Russia and the Philippines rose more than 30 percent.