China's southern island province of Hainan recorded a surge in spending on duty-free shopping by visitors since the implementation of a new duty-free policy on July 1, according to the General Administration of Customs.

Hainan recorded 8.61 billion yuan (about $1.26 billion) of duty-free spending by visitors from July 1 to Sept 30, a surge of 227.5 percent year-on-year, the administration said.

During the period, about 1.29 million tourists were drawn to the island, up 62 percent year-on-year.

Cosmetics, watches and jewelry were the most popular merchandise, accounting for 73.3 percent of the total sales revenue.

Starting from July 1, Hainan has increased its annual tax-free shopping quota from 30,000 yuan to 100,000 yuan per person.

The range of duty-free goods has expanded from 38 categories to 45, with some electronic products and wines newly added to the duty-free list.

China released a master plan in early June on building Hainan into a globally influential free-trade port.