NEW YORK - China is predicted to be the top tourist source market for the United States in 2018 with the number of visiting Chinese hitting 4.7 million, the country's official tourism and marketing organization Brand USA said on Tuesday.

Chris Thomson, President and CEO of Brand USA, told reporters on the sideline of a Sino-US tourism exchange event, that the number of Chinese travelers visiting the United States is increasing by 35 percent each year, beating any other country in the world.

Chinese travelers spent $8.8 billion last year in America, and each spent an average of $7,000, making America the top spending destination for Chinese tourists, he said.

Cooperation between the United States and China in tourism has been outstanding, according to Shao Qiwei, chief of China National Tourism Administration, and the level of exchange between the two countries keeps expanding.

He said 5.76 million people have travelled to the United States since the country granted the Authorized Travel Destination Status to Chinese citizens in 2007.

According to Shao, China and the United States, on the basis of negotiation, will explore possibilities to strengthen tourism promotion, accelerate integration of the tourism industry, and employ modern technology to further promote tourism.