BEIJING, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- Children's books were a highlight at Beijing International Book Fair, which concluded Sunday.

This year, an exhibition of children's books covering around 20,000 square meters was held for the first time as part of the fair, China's key international book fair and copyright trading platform.

Firms and publishers from countries including China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and France displayed different kinds of books, such as picture books, pop-up books, audio-books, comics and graphic novels, at the exhibition.

As Chinese parents attach more importance to the reading and education of their children, and the country has ended its decades-long one-child policy, the children's book market in China has great potential with growing demand.

According to an industry report, China's retail book market size surpassed 80 billion yuan (about 11.6 billion U.S. dollars) in 2017, up 14.55 percent year on year. Children's books were the main driver of market growth, with the children's sector accounting for over one-third of overall growth in the Chinese market.

"There are more books available for children on the market. We're happy to see that children not only love reading but also start writing and creating illustrations," said Liu Dan, director with Beijing United Tianchang Culture Communication Co., Ltd.

More than 2,500 exhibitors from 93 countries and regions took part in the Beijing International Book Fair which opened on Aug. 22, displaying 300,000 books.