SHANGHAI/TOKYO: China is on course to overtake the US, UK and Germany to become the largest outbound tourism market in the world by 2030, according to a new report.

Research firm Euromonitor International expects Chinese tourists to make 90m outbound trips in 2020, but the number is forecast to rise to 126m by 2030.

As shopping is the top priority for Chinese tourists when abroad, the report urged retailers keen to tap into this demand to adopt a number of specific measures for visiting Chinese.

Hiring or training Mandarin-speaking staff and approving the use of China UnionPay credit cards are essential, the report emphasised.

Targeted marketing campaigns around national holidays, such as Chinese New Year, will also help to boost sales, as will developing specific product ranges for the Chinese market while maintaining visibility on Chinese online retail sites.

The report added that marketers around the world are already developing strategies to appeal to Chinese tourists. Europe, for example, "plays on its heritage" and is home to numerous fashion designer brands.

In Japan, Chinese visitors take the opportunity to buy a variety of everyday FMCG products, such as cosmetics, appliances and consumer healthcare goods.

The extent to which Chinese holidaymakers are branching out to new travel destinations was underscored recently by official statistics from Australia.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed 102,700 Chinese citizens visited the country in January, a huge year-on-year rise of 57%. That was almost double the number of Americans who visited that month.

Even less established destinations, such as Cambodia, are benefiting. According to a Xinhua report, Cambodia attracted more than 694,000 Chinese tourists in 2015, up 24% on the previous year.

With close ties between the two nations, as well as many direct flights, Cambodia aims to attract about two million Chinese tourists by 2020.

Data sourced from Euromonitor International, News.com.au, Xinhua; additional content by Warc staff