The number of international visitors to Australia hit 8.5 million in the 12 months to March 2019, with China being the biggest source of visitors, data released June 19 revealed.

Tourism Research Australia (TRA) on Wednesday released its latest International Visitor Survey (IVS), revealing that the total number of visitors rose 3 percent from the previous year while the amount they spent rose 5 percent to 44.3 billion Australian dollars (30.4 billion U.S. dollars).

China remained Australia's leading tourism market, with the number of visitors from the country growing 2.9 percent to 1.3 million.

The amount spent by Chinese visitors grew by 10 percent to 12 billion Australian dollars (8.2 billion U.S. dollars), representing an additional 1.1 billion Australian dollars (757 million U.S. dollars) poured into Australia's economy.

Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Simon Birmingham said that the data was proof that a marketing campaign targeting travelers in Asia was working.

The number of visitors from Japan rose 8.6 percent to 437,547.

"Whilst some markets are showing maturity or the importance of our focus on high-value travelers, in others we're starting to see stronger growth," Birmingham told the Australian Financial Review (AFR).

"With its emerging middle class, proximity to Australia, improving air access and increasingly competitive airfares, there is definitely further opportunity to expand south and southeast Asia's tourism potential."