Beijing  - Stores selling Olympic souvenirs are reporting increased sales as enthusiasm in the Olympic Games grows among visitors and Chinese residents, local media said Friday.

The stores enjoyed total sales of close to 2.3 billion yuan (339 million dollars) during the first seven months this year, and have generated over 212 million yuan in taxes for the government, according to the Beijing Youth Daily, quoting data from the city's local taxation bureau.

"Sales have grown from the 40,000 yuan a day when our store first opened late in July, to 1 million yuan right before the Games, and to 2 million over the past few days," a manager surnamed Pang at the souvenir store in the Olympic Village was quoted as saying.

Around 16,000 athletes and officials from each country's delegation are staying at the Village.

The "Fuwa" Olympic mascots are the most popular items, with 4,000 sold to athletes, officials and journalists every day, accounting for more than 20 percent of the total sales, Pang was quoted as saying.

Tee-shirts, badges and stationery bearing Olympic symbols are also popular, said Pang, adding that each customer was spending at least 4,000 yuan (around 60 dollars) on a single visit to her shop.

The Beijing 2008 Olympic Flagship Shop, the city's largest souvenir store at its main shopping area Wangfujing Street, has received 70,000 to 80,000 customers a day since the Olympic Games began on August 8, and is already planning to expand its hours by two hours each day to cope with the crowds, the Xinhua news agency said.

Daily sales volume hit 5 million yuan, a 20 to 30-per cent rise from before the Olympics, Xinhua cited a store staff saying.

The 1,000-square-meter store offers items ranging from commemorative coins, sunglasses, models of the venues like the Bird's Nest and Water Cube, to commemorative vases priced at 49,800 yuan.

Sales of Olympic souvenirs would end at all 6,300 souvenir stores around China by March next year, according to the Beijing Olympics organizing committee (BOCOG). (dpa)