E-commerce, rural shoppers boost China’s retail sales in May

Retail sales in China for the month of May witnessed double-digit growth, pushed on by incredible growth in online consumer purchases and rural shoppers, according to local data released this week.

Online sales grew 26.5% in May, accounting for 13.2% of total retail sales

China’s retail sales jumped 10.7% last month, hitting RMB2.95 trillion (US$434.2 billion), reported the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Despite the yearly leap, China’s sales growth remained steady from April, just surpassing the median estimate of 10.6% growth from economists surveyed by Reuters.

The biggest mover and shaker was online sales, which grew 26.5% in May, accounting for 13.2% of total retail sales. This figure compared to growth of 25.9% for the four months ended April. But sales growth at larger enterprises remained flat from April at 10.7%, said NBS.

By location, Chinese consumption was stronger in rural areas, with retail sales increasing 12.7% last month, besting urban areas, which recorded a retail sales climb of 10.4%.

Moreover, China’s industrial production was also steady in May, growing 6.5% year on year, and exceeding expectations it would slow to 6.3%, reported the Financial Times.