THE chest circumference of Chinese women increased by nearly 1cm in the past 10 years, the Beijing College of Clothing Technology said in a recent report that studied changes in figure for Chinese women in the past decade, China News Service reported. The study also found that Chinese women are 0.5 centimeters taller than in the previous period.

The research, which focused on women aged 18 to 30, found that the average height of women in China's North measured 162.82cm and their average chest circumference was 83.54cm. Northern women are still the tallest in China.

The college has concluded with data collected from nearly 6,000 women in the last six years that Chinese females are inclined to boast an S-curve silhouette, something which is commonly regarded as an attractive feature.

The changes are thanks to a more balanced daily nutrition and participating in more sports activities. They also contribute to tremendous markets of underwear products. Many bra manufacturers have started to produce larger undergarments as women are wearing more B and C cup bras than before, the report said.

China has the fastest expanding underwear industry in the world. It is estimated that domestic underwear sales will hit 500 billion yuan (US$62.27 billion) in the next five years, the report said.