Marriage creates not only happiness and romantic promises between couples but also fortune and business opportunities for others.

A recent report from the National Committee of Wedding Service Industry claims Beijing will see more than 130,000 couples get married this year, who will spend about 3 billion yuan (US$375 million) in related service sectors.

Grand banquet celebration charges, bills for wedding rings, dressings, souvenir pictures and honeymoon trips attribute to the high expenditure, said Shi Kangning, secretary-general of the committee.

The Year of the Dog this year is seen by many as a golden period to tie the knot.

Money also pours into wedding service companies, which are becoming an increasingly popular means of organizing the big day.

Song Xilei, 24, a local public servant complained she failed to book a wedding service or reserve restaurant seats in June for her planned wedding day, and has had to change it to the latter half of this year.

"Our schedule is tight till January next year," said Tan Jun, manager of Jinyuangu, a Beijing-based wedding company.

Through the whole year, all the auspicious days, mostly falling on even dates according to the Chinese lunar calendar, have been "sold out" for serving new couples, Tan added.

"Busy is the most accurate word to describe my work from the very beginning of this year," he said.

In China, choosing a wedding day, as important as the ceremony itself, is a job for parents and even grandparents.

According to tradition, last year's Year of the Rooster and the Year of the Pig in 2007 are not good times for weddings, which has pushed more couples to try to find a day this year to get married.

"Children of the baby boomers, born in the mid-1950s, are now in their 20s, ready to get married and creating a huge market for the wedding service industry," Shi told China Daily about another reason boosting the field.

In Beijing, the average cost for a wedding ceremony is about 80,000 yuan, excluding bills for rings, dressing, trips and pictures over the course of the day.

And, more young people prefer to arrange and design their ceremony in a special, unique and unforgettable way by the involvement of wedding companies.

"More than half of new wedding couples will use the tailored service provided by companies this year, 20 percent higher than that of last year," said Shi.

He predicted a 10 percent year-on-year increase in terms of the rising commercial involvement in this field.

More than 200 companies have registered at Beijing Municipal Administration of Industry and Commerce as professional wedding service providers.

The rise in popularity of such companies is mirrored in other cities across the country.

It is estimated that 10 million couples are expected to get married this year in China.

(China Daily March 17, 2006)