China's wholesale and retail sectors have logged strong momentum in the first three months of 2025, providing solid support for expanding domestic demand in the country, the commerce ministry said on Monday.
From January to March, the added value of China's wholesale and retail trade grew by 5.8 percent from a year earlier to reach 3.3 trillion yuan (about 457.98 billion U.S. dollars), or 10.4 percent of the country's gross domestic product, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.
During the period, the transaction volume of key commodity markets in the wholesale industry reached 1.3 trillion yuan, while the transaction volume of industrial consumer goods markets increased by 0.8 percent year on year, the ministry said.
For the retail industry, the retail sales of goods reached 11 trillion yuan in the first three months, increasing by 4.6 percent year on year.
Retail sales in five major retail formats - convenience stores, specialty stores, supermarkets, branded stores, and department stores - all showed growth during the period, with year-on-year increases of 9.9 percent, 6.7 percent, 4.6 percent, 1.4 percent, and 1.2 percent, respectively.
Both urban and rural markets are thriving, with steady increases in consumer foot traffic and spending.
From January to March, foot traffic and sales in 50 key pedestrian streets and commercial districts nationwide monitored by the Ministry of Commerce grew by 5.7 percent and 5 percent year on year, respectively.
Meanwhile, rural e-commerce has also been flourishing. Data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that during the period, rural online retail sales reached 669.75 billion yuan, up 5.1 percent year on year, with online retail sales of agricultural products totaling 196.53 billion yuan, an increase of 6.4 percent compared to the same period last year.
China has seen about 100.35 million new home appliances sold under its consumer goods trade-in program since August 2024, with over 40 million appliances sold in 2025, according to the ministry.
Over 30 million digital products, including mobile phones, have been sold through the trade-in program since January 15, 2025, it said.
This year, 67,000 stores nationwide have launched electric bicycle trade-ins, resulting in 3.764 million new bikes being purchased, which is 2.7 times the total replacement volume of 2024.
China's wholesale, retail sectors see strong growth in Q1
China's wholesale, retail sectors see strong growth in Q1
China's wholesale, retail sectors see strong growth in Q1
China's wholesale, retail sectors see strong growth in Q1
