On the 23rd, the head of the Department of Consumption Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce talked about my country’s consumer market situation in the first quarter of 2026. The person in charge said that since the beginning of this year, driven by a series of policies and activities such as the trade-in of consumer goods, the "Tesco New Year" special event, and the pilot invoice with prizes, the consumer market has achieved a stable start.

In the first quarter, the total retail sales of consumer goods was 12.8 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.4% (the same below), and the growth rate was 0.7 percentage points faster than the fourth quarter of last year. Among them, the total retail sales in March were 4.2 trillion yuan, an increase of 1.7%. The per capita consumption expenditure of national residents actually increased by 2.6%, and final consumption expenditure drove GDP growth by 2.4 percentage points, laying a solid foundation for steady economic growth.

First, trade-in of old goods for new ones drives steady growth in commodity consumption. In the first quarter, trade-in sales of consumer goods exceeded 430 billion yuan, benefiting more than 60 million people. In the first quarter, retail sales of goods increased by 2.2%, and among the 16 categories of commodities for units above designated size, the growth rate of 9 categories reached more than 5%. Among them, basic daily necessities grew rapidly, with retail sales of grain, oil, food, clothing, shoes and hats, beverages, and daily necessities of units above designated size increasing by 10.0%, 9.3%, 6.7%, and 5.9% respectively; demand for some upgraded commodities was strong, and retail sales of gold, silver, jewelry, and cosmetics of units above designated size increased by 12.6% and 5.9% respectively.

Second, service consumption maintained rapid growth. Driven by holidays, events, performances, etc., consumption vitality such as leisure travel, culture, sports and entertainment has been fully unleashed. In the first quarter, service retail sales increased by 5.5%, of which catering revenue increased by 4.2%; retail sales of culture, sports and leisure, travel consulting and leasing, and communication and information services achieved double-digit growth.

Third, smart, green and healthy consumption is growing well. Business big data from the Ministry of Commerce shows that in the first quarter, sales of smart glasses on key platforms increased by 4.6 times, sales of first-level energy-efficient washing machines increased by 21.5%, sales of smart blood glucose meters increased by 20.5%, and sales of outdoor sports equipment increased by 10.7%. In March, the domestic retail penetration rate of new energy vehicles reached 51.5%.

The fourth is to unleash the potential of the rural consumer market. In the first quarter, urban retail sales of consumer goods increased by 2.3%; rural retail sales of consumer goods increased by 3.1%, a growth rate of 0.8 percentage points faster than that in urban areas. The per capita consumption expenditure of rural residents actually increased by 3.7%, which was 1.7 percentage points faster than that of urban residents. In the first quarter, the retail sales of consumer goods in counties and townships, including towns and rural areas, accounted for 40.3% of the total retail sales of consumer goods, an increase of 0.1 percentage points from the same period last year.

(CCTV reporters Wu Hao and Chen Qian)