SHANGHAI - The Chinese have emerged as the third-biggest spenders in outbound tourism worldwide, a senior official of China's National Tourism Administration (CNTA) said on Wednesday.

Li Shihong, head of the CNTA's Department of Tourism Promotion and International Liaison, made the announcement at a news conference before the opening of the China International Travel Mart (CITM) this year.

China has also been the third-largest tourism destination in the world, CNTA data shows.

The CITM 2012, jointly hosted by the CNTA, the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the Shanghai Municipal Government, will be held in Shanghai New International Expo Center from November 15 to 18.

First held in 2001, the CITM has grown to be the largest professional travel mart in Asia as China's economy keeps advancing, said Li. As an annual event, it is held in Shanghai and Kunming city in southwest China's Yunnan Province alternately.

There are 104 countries and regions participating in this Mart. The display space of the CITM has been extended to approximately 57,500 square meters in a bid to meet the growing demand of exhibitors.

There are more international booths this year than before, and the ratio of domestic booths to international ones has been balanced, with 1,582 domestic booths and 932 international booths in this Mart.

Dubbing tourism the No.1 industry worldwide, Li noted that its development could help boost growth amid the global economic downturn.

The CITM serves as an effective platform for international tourism cooperation, Li added.