China's consumer market showed an upward trend in September, thanks to the support from the government's trade-in program for consumer goods, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Thursday.
According to the data, the total retail sales of consumer goods in September reached 4.11 trillion yuan (about 577.6 billion U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 3.2 percent. The growth rate was 1.1 percentage points up from the previous month.
In the first three quarters, the total retail sales of consumer goods nationwide were 35.36 trillion yuan (about 4.97 trillion U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 3.3 percent.
An official of the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement that the consumer data shows certain characteristics both for the month and for the first three quarters.
First, the effect of the trade-in program is evident. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, the retail sales of goods in September reached 3.67 trillion yuan (about 515.7 billion U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 3.3 percent.
The retail sales of household appliances of enterprises above the designated size increased by 20.5 percent year on year; the retail sales of automobiles and furniture both increased by 0.4 percent year on year, turning from negative to positive.
Enterprises above designated size in China refer to wholesale enterprises with annual principal business income of 20 million yuan or more, retail enterprises with annual principal business income of 5 million yuan or more, and accommodation and catering enterprises with annual principal business income of 2 million yuan or more.
China rolled out a series of measures in July, including the issuance of special treasury bonds to expand the existing trade-in scheme covering commodities from automobiles and home appliances to real estate, as part of its efforts to spur consumption and speed up green transformation.
Second, service consumption grew rapidly. Data shows that in the first three quarters, service retail sales increased by 6.7 percent year on year, with the growth rate 3.7 percentage points higher than the retail sales of goods in the same period.
Among them, the catering revenue was 3.94 trillion yuan (about 553.7 billion US dollars) during the period, a year-on-year increase of 6.2 percent; per capita education, culture and entertainment consumption expenditure, and transportation and communication consumption expenditure increased by 10.1 percent and 10.0 percent, respectively, year on year.
Third, online and offline consumption grew simultaneously. Data shows that in the first three quarters, online consumption grew rapidly, with year-on-year online retail sales of physical goods increasing by 7.9 percent, accounting for 25.7 percent of total retail sales. Physical retail sales grew steadily, with the retail sales of convenience stores, specialty stores, and supermarkets increasing by 4.7, 4.0, and 2.4 percent, respectively, year on year.
Fourth, consumption is growing faster in rural areas than in urban ones. Data shows that in September, the retail sales of rural consumer goods reached 606.8 billion yuan (about 85.3 billion U.S. dollars), up 3.9 percent from a year ago, achieving a growth rate 0.8 percentage points higher than that of urban areas.
In the first three quarters, the retail sales of rural consumer goods reached 4.77 trillion yuan (about 670 U.S. dollars), a year-on-year increase of 4.4 percent; per capita consumption expenditure of rural residents increased by 6.5 percent year on year.
China's consumer market sees steady growth in September
China's consumer market sees steady growth in September
China's consumer market sees steady growth in September
