China's summer movie ticket sales nearly halved amid sluggish economy

A man checks a ticketing machine next to screens displaying movie posters for the Chinese film "Upstream," at a cinema in Beijing, Aug. 13, 2024.

Movie ticket sales in China have generated more than $1.5 billion so far this summer, a little more than half of last year's record total of $2.89 billion, according to China’s Film Data Information Network, an institution directly under the Central Propaganda Department.