The Chinese New Year, beginning on Feb 10, will be the Year of the Dragon, after the mythological animal that embodies majesty, auspiciousness, pride and integrity that could bind, emotionally, Chinese people all over the world together.

As usual, China Philately launched on Tuesday, in Beijing, a series of postage stamps and collectibles to mark the coming of the new year. New issues include an album of all the albums of this year and an album of selected stamps over the past four decades.

Gold plates, silver coins, bracelets adorned with color stones and fur toys, featuring a variety of dragon patterns, are on offer to attest to collectors of varying ages. Pop culture motifs which enjoy a large base of youngster fans have also been integrated into the design of this year's collectibles, such as the Minions and Panghu, the cartoon tubby tiger.

The launching ceremony was ended with a fashion show presented by children wearing clothes designed with dragon motifs and displaying new collectibles.