A cooperation agreement signed on Saturday between Hong Kong’s Yau Ma Tei Temple Street Association of Hawkers and Shop Operators and the Dongmen Chamber of Commerce in Shenzhen is set to link Temple Street and the bustling Dongmen Pedestrian Street across the border.

Representatives from Hong Kong’s Yau Ma Tei Temple Street Association of Hawkers and Shop Operators and the Dongmen Chamber of Commerce in Shenzhen signed the cooperation agreement on July 20. Influencers from both sides will regularly travel to the other commercial hub to publicize its attractions. They are expected to livestream at both the famous Temple Street night market and the Dongmen commercial area to promote city street vendors and culture, aiming to attract more tourists from across the border and boost the economy.

“This cooperation between the commercial pedestrian streets of the two places is the first of its kind in the country,” said Gilbert Yu Woon-wai, chairman of Yau Tsim Mong East area committee, at the signing ceremony.

Yu added, “The cooperation will regularly invite internet celebrities from Dongmen to Hong Kong to promote Temple Street, allowing more people to see Hong Kong’s cultural characteristics and attract more tourists to travel to the city and spend.” He expected the number of tourists who visit Temple Street to double within a year.

Temple Street is known for its night market and is popular with tourists and residents. Street vendors sell a variety of inexpensive merchandise and food items. Across the border, Dongmen Pedestrian Street’s shops and mini-stalls are also well-visited and serve as a gathering place for influencers.

Mainland street dancers Ma Rican, 27, and Yan Zhangbian, 24, made their first visit to Hong Kong on Saturday as the inaugural influencers invited under the new deal. Along with two other dancers from their group, they staged a livestreaming session from Temple Street, entertaining passers-by and thousands of internet users with their energetic street dance moves.

Ma, a dance teacher in Shenzhen who started livestreaming two years ago, expressed his delight in visiting Hong Kong and promoting exchanges. “I want to let Hong Kong people see our dances, and also promote good things I see and experience here to the mainland,” said Ma, who has about 155,000 followers on the popular short video platform Douyin. Ma and Yan, together with their group, perform six days a week on Dongmen Pedestrian Street.

The latest statistics from the Hong Kong Tourism Board showed that the city welcomed about 3.4 million visitors in May, up 20.2% from the same period last year, with about 2.6 million of them coming from the mainland.