Graphics: Resilience and potential of China's consumer market

In 2023, China's economy grew by 5.2 percent, and the country aims to expand its economy by around 5 percent in 2024.

Consumption, exports and investment have become the three drivers of China's economic growth.

In 2023, retail sales of consumer goods reached 47.15 trillion yuan (about $6.63 trillion). The annual contribution of final consumption expenditure to China's economic growth was 82.5 percent in 2023, improving by 43.1 percentage points compared with 2022. 

The country's consumer market, which is underpinned by a population of over 1.4 billion and an expanding middle-income group that exceeds 400 million, will continue to power the country's economic growth in 2024.

China's per capita disposable income was 39,218 yuan (about $5,511) in 2023, up 6.3 percent year on year in nominal terms, according to the National Statistics Bureau. The market structure has also been upgraded over the period, with residents more focused on the quality of consumption. In 2023, the country's per capita expenditure on services accounted for 45.2 percent of total consumption.

As the world's second-largest consumer market and the largest e-commerce market, China's online retail sales expanded 8.4 percent year-on-year in 2023 to 15.43 trillion yuan (about $2.18 trillion), accounting for 27.6 percent of the total retail sales of consumer goods.

The fourth China International Consumer Products Expo, held under the theme "Share open opportunities, Co-create a better life," is set to open on Saturday in Haikou, south China's Hainan Province.

The six-day expo will last until April 18 and is expected to attract more than 3,000 brands from 59 countries and regions. The United Kingdom, Mongolia and Malaysia will showcase their products in the form of national exhibition groups for the first time.