NEW York City officials have reached a deal with the Chinese government to join a select group of US tourist destinations with permission to promote themselves in China, according to The Associated Press.

Under the agreement, the city will not be able to advertise directly to Chinese citizens, but will hire industry representatives to work with local travel agencies and other providers, George Fertitta, CEO of the city's tourism office, said in advance of a formal announcement scheduled tomorrow in Shanghai.

"The mandate for us is to fish where the fish are," Fertitta said. "The Asia market is a very important market for us."

The NYC & Company head was to be in Japan today as part of a weeklong Asian tour to announce the launch of operations in Shanghai, Tokyo and in Seoul, South Korea. The openings, part of an expansion announced this year, were meant to help reach New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's goal of bringing 50 million tourists to the city each year by 2015.

With the addition of the three new cities, NYC & Company will have doubled its worldwide presence this year to 14 international locations. The other cities added to the roster since January are Madrid, Moscow, Amsterdam and Stockholm.

With the number of Chinese traveling from the mainland each year expected to nearly triple to 100 million people by 2020, New York is eager to profit from the burgeoning tourist boom.

The representation in Shanghai is meant in part to help position the city for an anticipated agreement between US officials and China that would further ease Chinese travel to the United States, Fertitta said.

"When that happens, we want to make sure that everyone sees that our arms are wide open for the Chinese travelers," said Fertitta, who is charged with growing an industry that already brings an estimated US$24 billion into the city each year.