1970-01-01 08:33:27
The sure sign of a boom economy is when the general public becomes cashed up and loosens the purse-strings - and that is certainly the case in China.
The nation's retail sales grew at an even faster pace last month, fueled by stronger overall purchases, with home-improvement products and jewelry leading the way.
Analysts said the robust consumption, backed by rising wages, occurred despite dearer product prices, providing another indication of economic prosperity. Sales rose 15.9 percent from a year earlier to 715.8 billion yuan (US$93.78 billion) last month, accelerating from the 15.5 percent increase in April, the National Bureau of Statistics announced yesterday.
For the first five months combined, sales expanded 15.2 percent to 3.5 trillion yuan. Sales in cities, accounting for two-thirds of national retail sales, were up 16.3 percent year on year to 486.2 billion yuan in May.
"Surging retail sales are partly led by the rising Consumer Price Index," said Feng Yuming, an analyst at Orient Securities Co.
Inflation hit 3.4 percent in May, its highest level in more than two years.
It is the third consecutive month that inflation has surpassed the People's Bank of China's three percent "comfort zone." To date, consumer prices have climbed 2.9 percent from a year earlier, the bureau said on Tuesday.
Feng expects retail sales to grow by about 16 percent this month.
Among all the retail categories last month, sales of home-improvement products posted the biggest growth of 62.8 percent from a year earlier after jumping 31.5 percent from a month earlier. Spending on jewelry surged 37.3 percent year on year after gaining 30.8 percent in April. Spending on vehicles increased by 34.2 percent last month, compared with a 38.6 percent increase a month earlier.
Oil products, spurred by the rising trend in vehicle purchases, climbed 17.2 percent in May, the bureau said.
The government has cut taxes, raised minimum wages and increased spending on education and health care to boost consumption and relieve the economy's dependence on foreign investment and overseas sales.
Annual disposable incomes among city dwellers advanced 12.1 percent to 11,759 yuan per capita last year, while those in rural regions climbed 10.2 percent year on year to 3,587 yuan.
Source:Shanghai Daily