FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of shoppers in mall
2. Various of customers at electronics stores, products on display

FILE: Hunan Province, central China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
3. Aerial shot of village, vehicles moving
4. Tourists gathering, talking with one another
5. Tourists taking photos, lotus flower field

FILE: Yunnan Province, southwest China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Various of moviegoers in cinema, entering screening room
7. Customers waiting in line

FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
8. Concert in progress, tourists, performers
9. Various of tourists at scenic spots
10. Various of tourists walking on streets, stalls
11. Tourist recording opera performance
12. Passengers boarding train
13. Various of passengers watching performances, participating in activities in cabin
14. Train moving

FILE: Shanghai, China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
15. Various of cityscape, boat docked at port, customers

FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
16. Street scene, pedestrians

FILE: Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - June 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
17. Various of tourists watching performance at night

China's total retail sales of consumer goods and services grew 2.5 percent year on year in the first eight months of 2026, official data showed, with consumption quality improving and the spending structure steadily upgrading.
Retail sales of consumer goods rose 1.1 percent in the January-August period, or 2.7 percent when automobiles are excluded, according to an official at the Ministry of Commerce.

Sales of daily necessities held up well, with grain, oil and food products up 6.8 percent, clothing up 5.1 percent and daily-use goods up 3.8 percent. Certain upgrade-category items grew faster — communication equipment jumped 16.3 percent, while cosmetics and cultural and office supplies rose 6.1 percent and 6.0 percent, respectively.

Sales of petroleum products fell 6.1 percent, a decline the official attributed to the substitution effect of new energy alternatives.

Meanwhile, green, smart and health-related products saw rapid growth. E-commerce data from key platforms showed smart glasses sales more than doubling, up 120 percent, while ECG monitors surged 75 percent, action cameras climbed 26.9 percent and organic food rose 7.4 percent.

Spending patterns are shifting from goods-dominated consumption toward a balance of goods and services, according to the ministry.

Service retail sales grew 4.9 percent in the first eight months, outpacing goods retail by 3.9 percentage points. The summer holiday period injected further vitality, with tourism consulting and rental services, as well as cultural, sports and leisure services, maintaining rapid growth.

The county-level market is emerging as a new driver of consumption.

Rural retail sales reached 4.4 trillion yuan in the first eight months, up 2.3 percent — 1.3 percentage points faster than in urban areas. Retail sales in counties and townships, which include both town and rural areas, accounted for 39 percent of total retail sales, 0.3 percentage points higher than a year earlier.