China is aiming to bolster the role of consumer spending in driving economic growth, setting an ambitious goal to increase retail sales of consumer goods to approximately 60 trillion yuan (around 8.84 trillion USD) by 2030 as part of its 15th Five-Year Plan.
Recently, the State Council released the nation’s inaugural five-year plan dedicated to consumption, outlining measurable targets such as retail sales goals and detailing specific strategies to grow consumer engagement. Alongside these broader development frameworks, sector-specific roadmaps are also being introduced.
Last year, retail sales of consumer goods totaled 50.1 trillion yuan, and in the first five months of this year, they increased by 1.4% annually to reach 20.6 trillion yuan. Throughout the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), consumption has contributed an average of 59% to economic growth, up from 49% during the previous plan.
The consumption blueprint emphasizes six key policy priorities: enhancing the quality and benefits of service consumption, expanding and upgrading goods consumption, fostering new consumption formats and models, increasing consumer purchasing power, improving the overall consumption environment, and strengthening the mechanisms that promote spending. These priorities include a total of 28 specific measures.
This strategy underscores a long-standing goal of shifting the economy from being primarily investment-driven to one that is more reliant on consumer activity.
In services, the plan promotes expanding offerings in elderly and childcare services, integrating culture and tourism more deeply into other industries, and elevating the quality of healthcare, sports, education, and professional training services.
For physical goods, the plan proposes increasing the supply of affordable housing, revitalizing urban neighborhoods and older residential districts, encouraging auto sales through supply chain innovations and enhancing the aftermarket—including used-car trading, vehicle modifications, and leasing—and supporting the smart upgrading of home appliances and furniture.
Regarding emerging consumption models, it calls for greater integration of artificial intelligence into everyday spending. This includes increasing the availability of smart devices such as smartphones, wearables, and robots, while promoting innovative retail concepts like the debut economy, immersive experiences, and inbound tourism. The country also plans to streamline visa-free arrangements and improve tax refund services for international visitors.
To facilitate these objectives, the plan seeks to remove unnecessary restrictions on consumption, bolster fiscal and financial support systems, and introduce paid leave policies to encourage spending.
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