China's retail sales of consumer goods went up 29.6 percent year on year in the first four months of this year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Monday.

 

The growth reversed from declines seen in the first four months last year, when consumer spending was disrupted by the COVID-19 epidemic.

 

Average Jan.-April growth for the past two years stood at 4.2 percent, the NBS said.

 

In April, retail sales surged 17.7 percent year on year and was 8.8 percent higher from the 2019 level. The two-year average growth was 4.3 percent.