China published 9,468 magazine titles with the relevant publishing generating about 17 billion yuan ($2.29 billion) in total annual output value.

The figures were released at a recent forum in Hangzhou, a tourist city in east China's Zhejiang Province, covering the development of science and technology magazines and periodicals in the country.

The forum said the 9,468 magazine titles published in an annual period that ended in late April, was up from 9,386 the previous year. It reported that 5,068 titles were for natural sciences and engineering technologies.

In addition, the magazines earned more than 3 billion yuan in advertising revenue, 10 times more than that of a decade ago.

(Xinhua News Agency November 18, 2007)