China's retail sales up 3.7 pct in 2025

BEIJING, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, climbed 3.7 percent year on year in 2025, official data showed Monday.

The total retail sales of consumer goods reached 50.12 trillion yuan (about 7.15 trillion U.S. dollars) last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In December alone, the retail sales of consumer goods rose 0.9 percent year on year, according to the NBS.

In 2025, the contribution rate of final consumption expenditure to economic growth stood at 52 percent, up 5 percentage points from the previous year, Kang Yi, head of the NBS, told a press conference.

China's economy expanded by 5 percent year on year last year, meeting the annual target of around 5 percent.

Retail sales in the country's urban regions rose 3.6 percent year on year in 2025, while those in rural areas expanded 4.1 percent.

"As living standards improve, residents' consumption is shifting toward a greater balance between goods and services, unlocking the potential of the service sector," Kang said.

In 2025, spending on services accounted for 46.1 percent of per capita consumption. This trend is being driven by nationwide efforts to innovate in consumer services and improve the overall consumption environment, with vibrant growth in sectors like culture, tourism, entertainment and sporting events, he said.

Kang noted that e-commerce, live-streaming commerce and online entertainment drove robust growth in online consumption last year.

Online retail sales jumped 8.6 percent year on year to 15.97 trillion yuan last year. In particular, online retail sales of physical goods rose 5.2 percent year on year to 13.09 trillion yuan, accounting for 26.1 percent of the total retail sales of consumer goods.

At the same time, China's green consumption continues to expand. Digital technologies such as artificial intelligence are being increasingly integrated into consumer experiences, while sectors like the silver economy, ice-and-snow tourism, and debut economy are gaining momentum and gradually emerging as new growth drivers, Kang said.

Looking ahead, numerous favorable factors are poised to support steady consumption growth in 2026 despite pressures and challenges, including significant potential in consumption upgrading, the continued effectiveness of pro-consumption policies, and the ongoing improvement in the consumer environment, Kang added.