THE Chinese rang in the New Year in Southampton precinct on January 24, 1990.

Members of Southampton’s Chinese Martial Arts celebrated the arrival of the Year of the Horse in traditional colourful style.

This year’s Chinese New Year begins on January 25, and is the year of the rat according to Chinese zodiac.

The year of the rat symbolises strong vitality. The rat has a strong reproductive capacity and a high survival rate, with about 5,000 babies born to one female rat each year.