China Venta Al Por Menor (Anual)

China's retail sales rose by 4.0% yoy in the first two months of 2025, quickening from a 3.7% growth in December, in line with market forecasts. It was the strongest increase in retail turnover since last October, boosted by rising consumption during the Spring Festivals. Sales grew for most components, including grain, oil, and food (11.5% vs 9.9% in December), tobacco and alcohol (5.5% vs 10.4%), clothing, shoes, hats (3.3% vs 0.8%), cosmetics (4.4% vs 0.8%), sports and entertainments (25.0% vs 16.7%), household appliances (10.9% vs 39.3%), office supplies (21.8% vs 9.1%), jewelry (5.4% vs -1.0%), personal care (5.7% vs 6.3%), medicine (2.5% vs -0.9%), and petroleum products (0.9% vs -2.8%). However, sales fell for beverages (-2.6% vs -8.5%) and cars (-4.4% vs 0.5%). China merges retail sales figures for January and February to account for the varying timing of the Lunar event each year, ensuring a more consistent and accurate comparison. In 2024, retail turnover gained 3.5%.