Spring Festival Box Office Breaks Out! The first day of the Lunar New Year exceeds expectations with box office, and the total box office in 2026 surpasses 5.7 billion yuan. "Includes Analysis of China's Film Market Development Trends"

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According to Cat’s Eye Professional Edition data, as of 2:00 PM on February 20, the total box office revenue in China for 2026 has exceeded 5.7 billion yuan, with the Spring Festival box office surpassing 3.2 billion yuan.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, February 17, the single-day box office reached 1.278 billion yuan, with a total of 595,000 screenings, setting a new record for the highest number of screenings on Lunar New Year’s Day in Chinese film history. Compared to Lunar New Year’s Day, the second day saw a significant drop, with a single-day box office of only 846 million yuan, which also led to a downward revision of the box office forecasts for several Spring Festival films. By the third day of the Lunar New Year, the performance once again exceeded expectations, injecting some confidence into the market.

In terms of individual film performance, “Flying Past Life 3” accounted for over 50% of the Spring Festival box office, leading this year’s holiday period.

Looking at the long-term trend, this year’s Spring Festival box office performance has returned to the growth trajectory seen in recent years.

According to Gower Street, a UK-based data analysis company, from 2017 to 2023, global box office revenue generally showed a pattern of rise, decline, and then rise again. Among the total global box office revenue of $33.9 billion in 2023, the Asia-Pacific region accounted for 39% of the market share; followed by North America and Europe, Middle East, and Africa, with respective shares of 27%. The Latin American market share was below 10%.

In terms of development, China’s box office revenue growth was the fastest, exceeding 80%; followed by Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, with a growth rate of 25%; North America’s growth was 21%; and the Asia-Pacific region (excluding China) grew more slowly at 9%.

Analyzing data from 2019 to 2023, the proportion of domestically produced new films in the Chinese market has shown a fluctuating upward trend. Specifically, in 2021, this proportion successfully surpassed 80%, and by 2023, it further increased to 84.71%, a rise of 0.96 percentage points compared to 2022.

In stark contrast, the proportion of imported new films has been fluctuating downward, dropping from 22.50% in 2019 to 15.29% in 2023. This indicates that domestic films are gradually gaining recognition and popularity among Chinese audiences, already dominating the domestic film market.

At the city level, the distribution of box office revenue in China remains relatively stable. From 2019 to 2023, second-tier cities have consistently been the main source of box office income, accounting for over 38%; followed by fourth-tier cities, with a share above 23%; first-tier cities’ share has remained between 16% and 20%.

This year’s Spring Festival box office exceeded expectations with record-breaking ticket sales and unprecedented screening sessions, demonstrating the resilience of the domestic film market. The period has shown a positive trend of more affordable ticket prices, diversified supply, and more active lower-tier markets. Moving forward, the industry will focus on content creation, optimizing supply structures, and innovating consumption scenarios, promoting the film market from seasonal hotspots to year-round prosperity, and advancing toward high-quality development.

Qianzhan Economist APP News Team

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