BEIJING, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, climbed 3.5 percent year on year in 2024, official data showed Friday.

Total retail sales of consumer goods reached 48.79 trillion yuan (about 6.79 trillion U.S. dollars) last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In December alone, the retail sales of consumer goods rose 3.7 percent year on year, according to the NBS.