UPI: Fate of Beijing's Silk Alley Still Undecided

According to a July 15, 2004 article in the Washington Times, authorities in Beijing postponed a meeting set for Thursday concerning the fate of Silk Alley, a popular shopping spot with tourists and local residents searching for extremely high quality imitation designer goods at bargain prices. The official reason given for moving the narrow alley of independent vendors into a building now being erected next to the site is public safety; however enforcement of intellectual property rights is also an issue.

According to a contemporaneous article from Xinhuanet, Xiushui Market is ". . . the most famous outdoor garments marketplace in the city haunted by foreigners. Built in 1984 next to the area of foreign embassies to China, the market is actually a commercial street that receives 20,000 to 30,000 visitors a day and generates an annual turnover exceeding 100 million yuan or 12 million US dollars."