Chinese (or Lunar) New Year holiday is upon us.
This year, Chinese New Year falls on Saturday, 10 February, and celebrations culminate with the Lantern Festival on 24 February.
Chinese New Year 2024 is a Year of the Dragon, more specifically, Wood Dragon, starting on 10 February 2024, and lasting until 28 January 2025.
Recent years of the Dragon are:
- 2012: 23 January, 2012 – 9 February, 2013
- 2000: 5 February, 2000 – 23 January, 2001
- 1988: 17 February, 1988 – 5 February, 1989
- 1976: 31 January, 1976 – 17 February, 1977
- 1964: 13 February, 1964 – 1 February, 1965
- 1952: 27 January, 1952 – 13 February, 1953
Is the Year of the Dragon Good Luck?
If you were born in one of the above years, then you are a Dragon. You will experience your zodiac birth sign year (benmingnian) in 2024, which is considered bad luck.
In Chinese culture, the Dragon holds a significant place as an auspicious and extraordinary creature, unparalleled in talent and excellence. It symbolises power, nobility, honour, luck, and success. 2024 is forecasted to bring about opportunities, changes, and challenges. This year might offer a favourable chance if you’re seeking a shift in your current life.
According to Chinese zodiac predictions, the luckiest zodiac signs in 2024 are Monkeys, Roosters, and Pigs. Tigers, Rabbits, Snakes, Monkeys, Roosters, and Dogs are close behind. However, if you’re born in the Year of the Rat, Ox, Dragon, Horse, Goat, or Dog, you might need to brace yourself for various challenges and make more effort than in 2023 to achieve your goals.
Lucky elements for people born in the Year of the Dragon
- Lucky numbers: 1, 6 and 7
- Lucky days: the 1st and 16th of any Chinese lunar calendar month
- Lucky colours: gold, silver, greyish white
- Lucky flowers: bleeding-heart glory bower, dragon flowers
- Lucky direction: east, north, south
- Lucky months: the 3rd, 4th, and 7th Chinese lunar months
Famous Dragons
- John Lennon
- Robert Oppenheimer
- Bruce Lee
- Dr. Seuss
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- Boris Johnson
- Rihanna
- Andy Warhol
- Vladimir Putin
- Elle MacPherson
- Che Guevara
- Roald Dahl
- Christian Dior
- Courteney Cox
- Ringo Starr
- Imran Khan
Shipping during Chinese New Year
Office Closures
If your importing goods from China, our mainland China offices will be closed from the close of business on Friday, 9 February, and will resume operations on Monday, 19 February 2024.
Our Hong Kong office will be closed from the close of business on Friday, 9 February and reopen on Wednesday, 14 February.
Our Taiwan office will be closed from Thursday, 8 February and will reopen on Wednesday, 14 February.
Most factories shut down for the main holidays, some for even longer.
China Customs
China customs will arrange skeleton staff on duty or half-day duty throughout CNY at some ports. Most Customs brokers, trucking companies and LCL warehouse operations will also be closed. Therefore, we recommend the following:
- Complete the customs clearance process for all shipments before CNY.
- For emergency or exceptional cases, advance notice (including complete customs documents) will be required to determine the feasibility.
Trucking Services
Most transport companies will stop services one week before the CNY and remain closed until at least Monday, 19 February, in most instances.
If you have any queries about freight movements throughout the period, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with your Magellan sales or client services representative.
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Magellan Logistics provides freight and logistics services to all industries, including sea freight, air freight, customs clearance and the all-important digital freight portal, providing 24/7 visibility of all your shipments. Get in touch with one of our freight specialists on 1300 651 888.
Sources:
Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year) 2024: Calendar & Horoscope (chinahighlights.com)
Year of the Dragon 2024: Chinese Horoscope Explained (thechinesezodiac.org)
