The China retail prosperity index, a barometer of retailers' expectations for the sector, went up this month, signaling retail enterprises' increasing confidence in the consumer market, according to the industry data released by the China General Chamber of Commerce (CGCC) on Monday.
The data show that the index stood at 51.1 percent in January, marking a month-on-month increase of 0.7 percentage points and a 0.2-percentage-point growth compared to one year ago.
The sub-index for commodity business came in at 51.8 percent, up 1.8 percentage points from December.
The profitability and per customer transaction indexes went up by 4.9 and 2.0 percentage points respectively on a monthly basis, both reaching a new high in about a year.
A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 reflects contraction.
The data also show that the upcoming Spring Festival holiday and the implementation of a new round of trade-in program for home appliances and other goods have driven up consumer demand across county areas, which play a significant role in boosting overall consumption growth.
China's retail prosperity index up in January
China's retail prosperity index up in January
China's retail prosperity index up in January
The 9th Jilin Ice and Snow Industry International Expo opened in Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province on Thursday, bringing together 420 enterprises and exhibitors from 32 countries.
Themed "New Consumption of Ice and Snow: A Common Future," the five-day expo features an exhibition area of over 60,000 square meters, presenting tourism promotion activities alongside local intangible cultural heritage. Three thematic pavilions at the event offer a comprehensive selection of ice-snow equipment, winter sports, and cultural tourism products.
A special immersion zone provides visitors with experiences in various ice-snow consumption scenarios, while a large fair alongside the expo offers the fun of shopping for both domestic and international products related to ice-snow activities.
"This self-driving intelligent car is an unmanned rescue vehicle for ice-snow scenarios that we developed in cooperation with the College of Automotive Engineering of Jilin University," said Zhu Jianming, an exhibitor.
Leveraging the expo as a platform to show the vitality and prospects of Jilin's ice-snow industry, the province will issue coupons worth a total of 100 million yuan (about 14 million U.S. dollars) during the event to boost ice-snow consumption, along with discounts offered by the exhibitors.
Smart equipment showcased at Int'l Ice and Snow Tourism Industry Expo in Changchun
