China's trade-in programs boost major home appliance sales

China's consumer goods trade-in programs have prompted major companies and e-commerce platforms to offer attractive incentives, driving significant growth in the sales of major home appliances and furniture.

In the city of Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, a number of home furnishing and appliances companies have jointly launched a whole-home trade-in promotion. One home goods mall's "whole-home renewal" discounts have attracted a steady stream of customers.

"I just moved into a new house, and I'm here mainly to check out the whole-home package deals. The salesperson told me that I can get a discount of around 2,000-3,000 yuan (about 280-420 U.S. dollars) by trading in my old items, which is very helpful for me," said a local resident in the mall.

Beyond these home goods malls, some e-commerce platforms have also expanded their trade-in programs offline. An e-commerce mall in Chongqing Municipality neighboring Sichuan is offering up to 20 percent off for trading in old products, as well as promotions like "buy two, get one free" for home appliances.

"Other recyclers only give me a few dozen yuan for my old fridge, which doesn't seem worth it. But the fridge deal offered by the mall can get me at least 400 yuan for the trade-in, which I think is pretty substantial," said a Chongqing resident named Huang Xi.

Data from the Ministry of Commerce shows that China's online retail sales reached 7.1 trillion yuan in the first half of this year, up 9.8 percent. Digital products, service consumption, and trade-in programs have become new growth points. E-commerce platforms have enabled over 400,000 product trade-ins across more than 300 categories, with fridge, washing machine, mobile phone and TV trade-in growth reaching 82.1 percent, 70.4 percent, 63.9 percent and 54.3 percent, respectively.

"During this year's 618 (June 18) Mid-Year Shopping Festival, with the support of the trade-in programs, over 700 home appliance and furniture brands saw their sales double year-over-year. Air conditioner trade-ins had the highest growth, surpassing 200 percent quarter-over-quarter," said Sun Jian, manager of an e-commerce store in Chongqing.

China's trade-in programs boost major home appliance sales

The dissolution of the lower house of Japan's parliament, setting the stage for a general election, has raised concerns among some Tokyo residents about the country’s political future.

The lower house was officially dissolved on Wednesday, as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba seeks to secure his party's lower house majority.

The general election is slated to be held on Oct 27, with campaigning set to begin on Oct 15.

Tokyo residents interviewed by China Central Television (CCTV) shared their views on the country’s political climate.

"I hope the government can take measures to solve the economic problems. Due to the depreciation of the Japanese yen, our economy is indeed weak at present. So what I'm most looking forward to is the new government taking action on the economy," said one resident.

"I'm a little dissatisfied, and I think the situation may not improve much and may even get worse," said another.

Ishiba won the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Sept 27 and was elected prime minister on Oct 1 in a parliament controlled by an LDP-led coalition.

The timing marked the shortest period between a prime minister taking office and the dissolution of the lower house in Japan's postwar history.

Tokyo residents share views on political climate after dissolution of Japan’s lower house of parliament