In the first three quarters, service retail sales grew 5.0% year on year, and inbound consumption heated up

At the State Council Information Office press conference on October 22, 2026, Yang Mu, Director of the Department of Market Operation and Consumption Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce, introduced that demand for service consumption such as entertainment, tourism, performances, and sports events is strong and has become a new growth driver for consumption; in the first three quarters of this year, service retail sales grew 5.0% year on year, 4 percentage points higher than goods retail sales. Yang Mu also stated that in 2025 China's per capita GDP has approached USD 14,000, and consumption is in a critical period of shifting from being dominated by goods to placing equal emphasis on goods and services. The press conference also introduced that "China Haul" continues to trend, and inbound consumption shows three new characteristics: categories expanding toward "new," scenarios extending toward "broad," and preferences shifting toward "buying"; from January to August this year, national departure tax refund sales grew by about 60% year on year, the number of people processing tax refunds increased 3 times, and the number of tax refund stores nationwide has exceeded 18,000, 4 times higher than at the end of 2024.