Duty-free sales to foreigners at department stores in Osaka during the past week were up more than triple year on year as Chinese shoppers made the most of the Lunar New Year holiday season.

At the Osaka branch of Takashimaya Co., duty-free sales in the week to Tuesday expanded some 3.5-fold from a year earlier, an official said.

The shopping spree was spurred by an increase in the number of flights by budget carriers from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Hello Kitty stationery, confectionery and Japanese whisky sold well at the store, which is linked via railway to Kansai International Airport.

Duty-free sales during the week quintupled at Kintetsu Department Store Co.'s flagship store in Abeno Harukas, the tallest building in Japan, a store official said. Japanese-brand cosmetics were especially popular among Chinese shoppers.

The Hankyu Department Store chain's flagship store in Osaka's Umeda district posted a fourfold rise in duty-free sales, a store official said, with luxury goods selling briskly, including a coral necklace with a price tag of nearly ¥4 million.

Duty-free sales at Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores Co. expanded some 5.4-fold at its Umeda store and around fourfold at its Shinsaibashi outlet.