Ministry of Commerce: A steady growth in the consumer market towards new and high quality direction this year.

On March 19th, the person in charge of the Consumption Promotion Department of the Ministry of Commerce talked about the situation of China's consumer market in January-February 2026. Since the beginning of this year, the Ministry of Commerce has conscientiously implemented the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, held the "Happy New Year Shopping" special Spring Festival event, implemented the trade-in policy for consumer goods, and accurately implemented various policy measures during the 9-day long Spring Festival holiday to drive steady growth in the consumer market and move towards new and better consumption. In January-February, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 8.61 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.8% year-on-year, with a growth rate 1.9 percentage points faster than December last year. First, overall commodity consumption remains steady. In January-February, retail sales of goods increased by 2.5%, with 9 out of 16 categories of goods above the quota showing growth rates of over 5%. Among them, basic necessities such as clothing, food, daily necessities, and beverages saw rapid growth, with retail sales of clothing, food, daily necessities, beverages increasing by 10.4%, 10.2%, 6.6%, and 6.0% respectively; demand for upgraded products was strong, with retail sales of jewelry, cosmetics, and sports and entertainment products of entities above the quota increasing by 13.0%, 4.5%, and 4.1% respectively. Second, holiday consumption vitality is strong. During the Spring Festival, various levels of commerce departments organized the "Happy New Year Shopping" special Spring Festival event to continue to unleash the potential of holiday consumption. According to the Ministry of Commerce's big data, the average daily sales of key national retail and catering enterprises during the Spring Festival holiday increased by 5.7% compared to last year, with a growth rate 1.6 percentage points faster. The foot traffic and turnover of 78 pedestrian streets (commercial districts) monitored by the Ministry of Commerce increased by 6.7% and 7.5% respectively. Celebrating the Chinese New Year has become a new trend among foreigners, with a growth of 18.4% in orders for inbound tour products on key platforms. Third, experience consumption grows rapidly. Driven by factors such as the extended holiday period, residents' willingness to travel is high, leading to rapid growth in tourism, leisure, and related consumption. In January-February, service retail sales increased by 5.6%, with a growth rate 0.1 percentage points faster than the whole of last year. Among them, catering revenue increased by 4.8%, and retail sales of travel consulting and leasing services and cultural and leisure services achieved double-digit growth. Fourth, there is strong demand for smart and green product consumption. The trade-in policy for consumer goods has a significant driving effect on smart and green products, with retail sales of communication equipment, cultural and office supplies, and household appliances increasing by 17.8%, 5.8%, and 3.3% respectively. Ministry of Commerce's big data shows that sales of smart glasses on key platforms increased by 1.8 times, sales of intelligent robots from Siasun Robot & Automation increased by 13%, and sales of energy-efficient refrigerators increased by 8.1%. Fifth, rural consumption growth is faster than urban consumption. Consumption in counties continues to grow, and the potential of sinking markets is continually being unleashed. In January-February, urban retail sales of consumer goods increased by 2.7%; rural retail sales of consumer goods increased by 3.2%, with a growth rate 0.5 percentage points faster than urban areas. The proportion of rural consumer goods retail sales in the total social consumer goods retail sales reached 38.5%, an increase of 0.1 percentage point compared to the same period last year. This article is compiled from the official website of the Ministry of Commerce, edited by GMTEight: Feng Qiuyi.