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(Yicai Global) June 14 -- China's consumer goods sales are stilling rising quickly and stably despite slowed gains last month, according the National Bureau of Statistics.
Retail sales of consumer goods increased by 8.5 percent on the year to CNY3 trillion (USD470 trillion), 0.9 percentage point slower than the month prior, bureau spokesman Mao Shengyong said at a press briefing today. Average growth over the first five months was still 9.5 percent, just 0.2 point lower than the first four months, he added.
One of the reasons for the slowdown in May was the changing dates of the Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on the lunar calendar's fifth day of the fifth month, Mao continued. The holiday weekend was in May in 2017, but takes place in June this year, and that stunted growth, he believes.
Another factor is delayed consumption. China's cabinet plans to lower tariffs on imported cars and other daily goods from July 1, which is causing many consumers to reduce their current consumption in anticipation of the price drops.
Editor: James Boynton