CCTV News: Since the beginning of this year, China's series of policies to boost consumption have continued to be effective, the vitality of the consumer market has been released at an accelerated pace, and its supporting role in economic growth has continued to emerge.
The latest statistics show that in May, the total retail sales of consumer goods was 413.26 billion yuan, an increase of 6.4% year-on-year, and the growth rate reached the highest monthly level since 2024. Among units above the limit, nearly 90% of the retail sales of commodity categories have increased. Behind the recovery and improvement of the consumer market, new growth points continue to emerge.
New scenarios for service consumption leverage new vitality for consumption. In the first five months of this year, service retail sales increased by 5.2% year-on-year, a growth rate of 0.1 percentage point faster than the previous four months, and 0.1 percentage point higher than the growth rate of commodity retail sales during the same period. Driven by the holiday economy, residents' travel has continued to be active, and consumption of cultural, tourism, leisure and catering has grown rapidly. Catering revenue increased by 5.9% in May, the highest growth rate since April 2024.
Counties and township consumption potential is accelerating. With the continuous improvement of county-level commercial facilities and commercial circulation channels becoming increasingly smooth. In the first five months of this year, the retail sales of county-level consumer goods increased by 5.4% year-on-year, a growth rate of 0.6 percentage points higher than urban consumer goods retail sales. The proportion of county and township consumer market size in total retail sales of consumer goods has further increased.
Green, intelligent and high-quality products are accelerating their entry into thousands of households. Driven by the policy of exchanging consumer goods, in May, the retail sales of household appliances and audio-visual equipment, communication equipment, cultural office supplies and furniture products increased by 25.6% year-on-year, driving the total retail sales of social consumer goods by 1.9 percentage points. It has driven the double-digit growth of new products such as new energy vehicles, tablet computers, and electric bicycles.
