February 3, 2003	Monday	Zilhaj 1,1423

HONG KONG, Feb 2: Some 500,000 people watched a spectacular fireworks display to welcome the Chinese New Year in Hong Kong on Sunday evening.

The 23-minute display was watched by crowds on both sides of the territory’s landmark Victoria Harbour, marking the start of the Year Of The Goat in the Chinese lunar calendar.

A police spokesman said the event, featuring more than 500,000 US dollars worth of pyrotechnics, passed off peacefully. Busy roads were cordoned off for the display which began shortly after 8 p.m.

Hundreds of thousands more watched the display live on television. It fell in the middle of a four-day public holiday for which many people have left Hong Kong for New Year breaks.

The signs of the Chinese calendar rotate on a 12-year cycle and the last Year Of The Goat in 1991 saw the Gulf War.

creaking: China’s Premier Zhu Rongji urged transport officials to ensure the smooth running of services on Sunday as bus stations, train stations and airports remained clogged on the second day of the Lunar New Year.

China’s 1.3 billion population thronged temples to pray for good fortune and visited relatives’ homes on the second day of the Year of the Goat, traditionally a time for couples to visit the wife’s parents.—dpa/AFP