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China consumption

China consumption
The latest news, analysis and opinion on China consumption. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Global ice cream brands are losing market share in China as consumers opt for cheaper, more innovative local varieties. Photo: Shutterstock
Consumers

‘Not cool’: why China is falling out of love with foreign ice cream

As in many other areas, young Chinese are turning away from global brands like Häagen-Dazs in favour of cheaper, nimbler local rivals.

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Chinese culture

China’s museums find a solution to their cash flow woes: viral souvenirs

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China manufacturing

Will Guangdong’s plan for a domestic version of Canton Fair pay off?

China economy

Economists call for structural reforms to shift China’s focus to consumption

HKUST professor tells ‘Summer Davos’ panel that opportunities can be found in services sector and smaller Chinese cities.

Shoppers visit a newly opened outdoor shopping mall in Beijing on June 1. Photo: AP
US-China trade war

‘Hefty price tag’ for subsidy scheme: is China’s consumer boost sustainable?

The subsidy scheme has been key to lifting China’s consumer spending this year. But it is expensive – and may be creating new problems.

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Jewellery

How deep will China go to boost gold production by more than 5%?

Central government aims to increase country’s gold reserves by up to 10 per cent in next three years.

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China economy

China’s central bank doubles down on financing support to boost consumption

Guangdong, country’s wealthiest province, announces plan to hand out more vouchers and subsidies, further promote trade-ins.

A customer checks out cellphones at a shop in Leshan, Sichuan province, on June 15. Photo: Xinhua
Banking & finance

With The Monsters, Monkey King and Ne Zha, China IP businesses brace for growth

China’s IP sales are projected to grow at an annual rate of 17.2 per cent through 2029 after reaching US$1 billion in 2024, CICC says.

China economy

How is a grass-roots soccer league scoring economic goals in China’s Jiangsu?

Competition featuring 13 amateur, city-based teams has become a commercial juggernaut in the past month.

China society

China warns of blind box ‘addiction’ among country’s youth

Communist Party newspaper calls for controls on ‘out-of-control’ consumption of roulette-style items by minors in high-profile report.

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The proliferation of “blind box” toys has led to a warning of excessive consumption from China’s ruling Communist Party. Photo: AFP
Food and Drinks

China urges officials to rein in overzealous dining austerity measures

With some Chinese localities biting off more than they can chew on meal restrictions, major Communist Party publications are encouraging restraint.

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Recent calls for frugality in official meals in China have led to some local governments taking extreme measures to show their compliance. Photo: CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
Banking & finance

China’s consumer-goods spending improves as deflation eases, Bain says

The outlook for 2025 is still unclear because of an ongoing consumption downgrade and changes in spending patterns.

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China jobs

Can ‘emerging occupations’ solve China’s youth job crisis? Not everyone is sold

New recognised roles - particularly in culture and tourism - have been touted as helping fill employment gaps, but opinions are mixed.

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Hong Kong stock market

Gen Z’s ‘emotional consumption’ fuels surge in consumer stocks like Pop Mart

Shares of Pop Mart, the Chinese toymaker that owns Labubu, have surged almost 600 per cent over the past year in Hong Kong.

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Labubu figures and stickers are seen at a Pop Mart shop in Beijing on June 12, 2025. Photo: AFP
China’s Communist Party

China’s top baijiu maker faces sobering reality as austerity trims profits

Guidelines restricting spending by officials are trimming profits for one of China’s strongest brands – but there’s little the company can do.

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Moutai, one of China’s most popular liquor brands, is being put in a difficult position by rules limiting extravagant spending by officials. Photo: Xinhua
China’s film industry

China’s film distributors pledge more imports to diversify market

As domestic releases dominate China’s box office, distributors have renewed calls for overseas titles to keep market fluid.

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China manufacturing

Baijiu blues and plum pickings: tastes of China’s Gen Z rewrite liquor industry

Young Chinese are driving a shift from the traditional white spirit to fruity, lower-alcohol beverages, in a sign of as evolving lifestyles.

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Tourism

As China’s Dragon Boat Festival, Children’s Day coincide, family tourism booms

As Beijing looks to tourism to drive consumption, travel bookings spike as families celebrate long weekend.

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Children play a dragon boat-themed game in Maming Village of Tongxiang City, east China’s Zhejiang Province on June 9, 2024. Photo: Xinhua/Xu Yu
China economy

Mission: Impossible? China faces box office blues during Dragon Boat Festival

Film ticket sales estimated to decline compared to previous holiday – but analysts say long-term trends remain positive.

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US-China trade war

Hard to pivot: why China’s exporters struggle to sell at home despite trade war

They went the extra mile to win over Western markets – then Trump’s tariffs changed everything.

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China economy

Opinion | Urban renewal is part of China’s long game to harden the economy

China’s preferred strategy is steady city development over debt-fuelled expansion and slow-burning stimulus over headline-making injections.

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A view of homes in Beijing on December 16. The deeper value of upgrading older buildings and the surrounding infrastructure lies in long-term spillover effects, such as follow-on spending. Photo: EPA-EFE
China economy

China stops Labubu, Molly doll smugglers as prices soar, fights reported overseas

Driven by high-profile celebrities and social media, consumer demand for the toys has spiked – posing problems at some Chinese airports.

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People look at collectable designer art toy Labubu at a Pop Mart pop-up store in Siam Center shopping mall in Bangkok on May 6, 2025. Photo: AFP
China travel

China’s Xinjiang woos foreigners for 1 trillion yuan tourism haul amid sanctions

The region hopes a tourism boom will make its economy more resilient in the face of Western sanctions, analysts said.

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China's economic recovery

China’s regulators must act quickly to stamp out price wars: People’s Daily

The party mouthpiece warns that excessive, cutthroat competition is harming the long-term development of industries like food delivery.

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China economy

China’s theme park capital in ‘stage of rapid growth’ as foreign capital invests

From Peppa Pig to Lego, Shanghai leads the way in attracting global amusement parks – a sector free from trade tensions, analysts say.

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Fireworks explode over the Enchanted Storybook Castle at the Shanghai Disney Resort on New Year’s Day on January 1, 2024 in Shanghai, China. Photo: VCG via Getty Images
Tourism

Have ticket, will travel? China’s concertgoers spur tourism spending spree

Eager fans are criss-crossing China to see their beloved stars – and spending while doing it, providing a much-needed consumption boost.

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Tickets to comedian Jimmy O. Yang’s upcoming shows in Hong Kong were quickly snatched up. Photo: Instagram / @jimmyoyang
China-EU relations

‘It’s crazy’: inside Europe’s growing obsession with Chinese blind-box toys

The craze is the latest sign that Chinese brands are becoming more skilled at winning over Western consumers.

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US-China trade war

To survive the trade war, China aims to create a stronger domestic economy

Beijing has gained greater urgency in its push to rebalance the economy and make it less vulnerable to US tariffs, analysts say.

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