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Ji Siqi

China will subsidise consumers who purchase new smartphones this year, in the latest attempt to elevate the country’s sluggish domestic consumption as external uncertainties are set to mount.
The country’s nationwide consumer trade-in programme, funded by sovereign bonds, will be expanded to personal digital products, including smartphones and tablets, as well as smartwatches and bracelets, its top economic planner announced on Friday.
Yuan Da, deputy secretary general of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at a press conference that China will “significantly increase the scale of ultra-long-term special treasury bonds” to support the expansion of consumer goods trade-ins and industrial equipment upgrades in 2025.
The NRDC will optimise the allocation of funds by favouring areas with better results achieved in the trade-in programme last year, Yuan said.
It will also simplify the subsidy process to reduce the liquidity pressure on enterprises, while strengthening fund supervision, he added.
By the end of August, Beijing had disbursed 150 billion yuan (US$20.55 billion) to local governments to subsidise consumer purchases of home appliances and electric cars.
The move injected some energy into weak domestic consumption that has impeded China’s economic recovery, as a large share of household wealth has been trapped in the dwindling property and stock markets.
China’s retail sales posted strong growth in October by increasing 4.8 per cent, year on year, and reaching the highest level since February.
If the two rounds are too close to each other, you may not have many more goods to trade in
Lu Ting, Nomura
But the momentum slowed in November, when the growth rate dropped to 3 per cent. National Bureau of Statistics spokesman Fu Linghui attributed the slowdown to the earlier start of China’s “Double 11” shopping festival that resulted in some purchases being made in October.
China’s largest metropolitan areas saw the biggest drop in retail sales growth in November, with Beijing’s sales falling by 14.1 per cent and Shanghai seeing a 13.5 per cent drop, year on year.
Lu Ting, chief China economist at Japanese investment bank Nomura, said a scaling back by foreign firms in China has been among the factors triggering consumption shocks in major cities, while an ongoing anti-corruption campaign in the finance sector also dampened the catering industry in Shanghai.
And the consumer goods trade-in programme may be less effective in boosting consumption this year compared with 2024, Lu predicted.
“The trade-in programme is for people to buy durable goods,” Lu said. “If the two rounds are too close to each other, you may not have many more goods to trade in. So, the demand may drop, and the multiplier effect of the policy could be significantly reduced.”
It was not immediately revealed how much the new subsidies could reduce the cost of personal devices, or which brands will be covered.


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In a bid to galvanise business and shore up weak consumption, last year’s trade-in programme is being expanded, making it a good time to save on electronics


In a bid to galvanise business and shore up weak consumption, last year’s trade-in programme is being expanded, making it a good time to save on electronics.


Calling all smartphone seekers: China to subsidise personal devices, expand trade-in push

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}In a bid to galvanise business and shore up weak consumption, last year’s trade-in programme is being expanded, making it a good time to save on electronics

In a bid to galvanise business and shore up weak consumption, last year’s trade-in programme is being expanded, making it a good time to save on electronics