“The total spending of the Beijing Olympics is on par with that of the 2004 Athens Games. We’re able to exceed the original target as the sponsors were so good,” said Jiang, “the Games made a profit of at least $ 16 million USD after deducting $ 1.609 bn USD of spending from the income of $ 1.625 bn USD.”

The numbers don’t lie. But there’re a number of ways people count them. According to Xinhua, China’s state-run news agency, the Beijing Games cost at least  a whopping $ 40 billion USD. The enormous bill included facilities building and renovating, related infrastructure projects, four new subway lines, a high-speed rail to Tianjin, Beijing’s neighboring city, and the largest airport terminal in the world. So only God knows where this $ 16 million USD profit came from.

Sources:

• People’s Daily:  Surplus of Beijing Olympic Games exceeds 16 million USD
• Xinhua:  Beijing Olympics – China’s come-of-age show

Related reads:

• LA Times:  Beijing goes to extremes for its Olympic face-lift
• WSJ China Journal:  The $40 Billion Question: How Much Were Olympics Worth to China’s ‘Brand’?

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