Inbound travelers line up for customs clearance at Haikou Meilan International Airport in South China's Hainan Province on January 17, 2026. Photo: VCG

The National People's Congress (NPC), China's national legislature, held a press conference on Wednesday at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing one day ahead of the opening of its annual session. Lou Qinjian, spokesperson for the fourth session of the 14th NPC, briefed the press on the session.

In response to a question noting that last year's hit phenomena — including the Jiangsu Super League, the animated film Ne Zha 2, and the popular toy Labubu — highlighted the vitality and potential of China's consumer market, and asking how authorities assess last year's consumption performance and what policy measures will be introduced this year to further boost consumption, Lou said on Wednesday that China will continue to make expanding domestic demand a strategic priority this year, with efforts to boost consumption and build a stronger domestic market.

Lou noted that consumption is the main engine driving economic growth. In 2025, China rolled out a special initiative to boost consumption, leading to steady expansion of the consumer market. Total retail sales of consumer goods surpassed 50 trillion yuan（$7.2 trillion） for the first time, with consumption contributing 52 percent to economic growth.

Lou said China's consumption structure continued to upgrade, with expanded trade-in programs for consumer goods benefiting 366 million people and platforms such as the China International Import Expo helping meet diversified demand. Services consumption also showed strong momentum, with retail sales of services rising 5.5 percent and sectors including culture and tourism, leisure and transportation maintaining double-digit growth, while digital, green and health-related consumption continued to expand.

He added that inbound consumption gained traction as China expanded its visa-free policy and improved the departure tax-refund scheme, fueling the popularity of "China Travel" and "China Shopping." Sales of tax-refunded goods for departing travelers nearly doubled over the year, while the Hainan Free Trade Port saw a fresh wave of tourism consumption following the launch of island-wide customs operations.

Lou said China will continue to prioritize expanding domestic demand this year, boost consumption and build a stronger domestic market. Measures will include increasing the supply of quality goods and services, improving service consumption, optimizing the consumer goods trade-in program and creating a more international consumption environment through initiatives such as the "Shop in China" campaign.

Lou added that efforts will also focus on linking people's well-being with consumption growth by promoting high-quality employment and implementing plans to increase incomes for urban and rural residents to strengthen spending power. China will also steadily advance equal access to basic public services and improve systems for education, childcare, elderly care and healthcare, reducing households' concerns about future spending.

"The NPC Standing Committee will also conduct oversight on efforts to build a unified national market and advance comprehensive rural revitalization this year, while formulating laws on social assistance, medical security and childcare services, so that more resources are directed toward improving people's livelihoods and enabling them to spend, feel confident about spending and be willing to spend," Lou said.


Global Times