Opinion

Seize new opportunities in a 10-trillion-yuan consumer "blue ocean" market

China has unveiled measures to expand and upgrade consumer goods consumption, according to an implementation guideline made public on August 31. The guideline, jointly issued by seven government departments, including the Ministry of Commerce and the National Development and Reform Commission, calls for fostering 10-trillion-yuan markets in areas such as green, smart and health consumption by 2030. Keeping pace with shifting consumption trends, this policy unlocks new growth potential and represents a critical approach to expanding domestic demand, facilitating transformation, and developing a resilient domestic market.

Developing upgraded consumption actively responds to changing consumer needs. As the middle-income population expands, Chinese residents' consumption is gradually shifting from reliance on physical goods to balanced spending on both products and services. Recent consumption data reveal a continuous drop in the proportion of food spending alongside steady growth in culture, sports, entertainment and other consumption categories. This marks a structural shift from meeting basic subsistence needs toward development and quality improvement. Nurturing upgraded consumption matches the domestic consumption transition trend and helps translate massive potential consumer demand into actual purchasing power.

Developing upgraded consumption guides and energizes innovation on the supply side. Consumption represents more than final purchasing activity. Through dynamic shifts in demand, it sends clear market signals to guide structural adjustment and technological innovation on the supply side. Rising demand for home-based elderly care has spurred rapid iteration of home monitoring devices and age-friendly household appliances. Cultural and tourism consumption has evolved from basic sightseeing to immersive experiences, driving expanded and higher-quality supply of museums, cultural and creative products, and immersive performances nationwide. Automobile consumption is increasingly oriented toward intelligent driving, prompting automakers to scale up R&D investment in autonomous driving and interaction technologies.

To advance green consumption, we should further increase the supply of new energy vehicles, energy-efficient home appliances, green building materials and organic food, while refining relevant standards, certification and labeling systems. For smart consumption, alongside the accelerated iteration of smart home devices, smart wearables and household service robots, it is critical to address the key issue of insufficient practicality in such products. To foster health consumption in response to demographic changes and people's diverse health demands, we need to expand the provision of home medical devices, tap into the potential of traditional Chinese medicine health services, and shore up weak links in age-friendly services.

Policy

1. China will take further steps to support childbearing, including making childcare more accessible and affordable, a senior health official from the National Health Commission announced on September 14 at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office. By the end of this year, 1,000 more community-level medical and health institutions will be capable of offering pediatric care compared with last year.

2. China unveiled an action plan to further promote smart home consumption on September 14. The plan, jointly issued by eight government departments including the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, sets out seven measures to expand high-quality smart home supply, improve the smart home standards system, support smart home consumption, develop elderly-friendly smart home products, streamline the service chain for recycling used household goods, optimize community services, and strengthen fiscal and financial support.

Data

1. China's direct investment in other BRICS countries has grown steadily in recent years, giving a strong boost to local economic and social development, according to the Ministry of Commerce. Such investment reached about 4 billion U.S. dollars in the first seven months of this year, mainly flowing into manufacturing, construction, and power.

2. The first phase of China's Hanjiang-to-Weihe River Diversion Project has supplied over 450 million cubic meters of water to Xi'an and generated more than 1.6 billion kWh of electricity since commissioning in July 2023, according to the South-to-North Water Diversion Corporation.

3. China's innovative drugs are going global at a faster pace, with the total value of out-licensing deals exceeding 120 billion U.S. dollars so far this year, up 36 percent from a year earlier.

4. Since China began visa-free policy trial for Russian ordinary passport holders, Heilongjiang's ports have recorded roughly 3.388 million inbound and outbound crossings, up 29.3 percent year on year. Among them, Russian arrivals totaled about 617,000, up 76.9 percent year on year, according to the provincial border inspection authority.

5. The first railway to give Xizang in southwest China access to the national rail network has handled 104 million passenger trips and 824 million tonnes of cargo over the past two decades, the China Railway Qinghai-Xizang Group Co., Ltd. announced.

6. The data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that in the first eight months, retail sales of consumer goods, including sales of goods and catering revenue, totaled about 32.76 trillion yuan, up 1.1 percent year on year. Excluding automobiles, retail sales totaled about 30.18 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.7 percent.

7. Trade through the China-Laos Railway grew in the first eight months, with cargo volume reaching 3.82 million tonnes and cargo value hitting 23.38 billion yuan, up 1.6 percent and 31.5 percent year on year, respectively, customs data showed. Both exports and imports rose 31.5 percent year on year, to 11.24 billion yuan and 12.14 billion yuan, respectively, underscoring the railway's growing role as a "golden route."

8. China's national carbon market had recorded a cumulative trading volume of 961 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by the end of August 2026, with total turnover reaching 65.7 billion yuan (about 9.71 billion U.S. dollars), according to a report released on September 15 at the China Carbon Market Conference 2026 in Wuhan, Hubei Province.

9. China opened a major new canal on September 16, giving its landlocked southwest a shortcut to the coast and overseas markets, particularly those in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the country's largest trading partner. Built at a cost of 72.7 billion yuan (about 10.75 billion U.S. dollars), the 134.2-kilometer Pinglu Canal runs from Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, to the Beibu Gulf, the closest maritime outlet for much of southwest China.

10. Electricity consumption by China's electric vehicle charging and internet data service sectors has soared since the beginning of this year, highlighting robust demand from the country's fast-growing new-energy vehicle and digital industries. Power consumption of internet data services has exceeded 60 billion kilowatt-hours, according to the China Electricity Council.

(Source: Economic Daily)