Arrangements for art performances and trade activities during the six-day 2009 Lhasa Shoton Festival have been made public, according to the Shoton Festival Office.

The Shoton (Sour Milk Drinking or Yogurt) Festival, held on the first day of the seventh month, was strictly a religious festival prior to the 17th century.

The opening ceremony for the festival will be held on the Potala Palace Square at 10:30, August 20.

The Potala Palace Square is decorated with flowers to greet the Shoton Festival in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Aug. 13, 2009, photo from Xinhua.

During the event, art performances will be staged at Norbu Lingka and the Zongjiao Lukang Park.

Apart from religious rituals and entertainment activities, trade negotiations and business exhibitions will also be held during the festival.

The Summit on the Development of Tibet's New Economy and Industries and signing ceremonies of trade negotiation projects will open on August 21.

How to promote Tibet's unique resources and better develop its tourism resources will be hot topics at the summit.

File photo shows the 2010 Shanghai World Expo mascot, Haibao, which literally means treasure of the world, photo from Xinhua.

A ceremony will be held to introduce the 2010 Shanghai World Expo mascot, Haibao, which literally means treasure of the world, to Tibet on the Potala Palace Square on 9:00 a.m. on August 22.

On the same day, the Forum on Ecology and Urban Development, the Damxung Dangjiren Horse Racing Festival, traditional equestrianism performance, yak racing festival and tug-of-war will be held one by one.

In the evening, a large performance titled "Himalaya" will be staged.

The 4th Lhasa International Halfway Marathon Tournament will start on the Potala Palace on August 25.