China's offline consumer service sectors, including tourism, movies and catering, that were hit severely by the Covid-19 epidemic, saw a strong rebound in demand during the Spring Festival holiday. - AFP
BEIJING (Xinhua): China's consumption sector posted a strong recovery in early 2023, with the high-end and mid to high-end discretionary service sectors performing impressively, according to a report from Fitch Ratings.
China's offline consumer service sectors, including tourism, movies and catering, that were hit severely by the Covid-19 epidemic, saw a strong rebound in demand during the Spring Festival holiday, it said.
Domestic tourist trips recovered to around 90% of the 2019 level, while tourism spending was at 73% due to ticket discounts.
China's box office achieved the second-highest take on record, and the number of cinema visits was only slightly below the 2019 level, said Fitch Ratings. Catering dine-in consumption grew by 15.4% year on year during the holiday, with average restaurant spending up by 10.8%, Fitch Ratings revealed, citing data from the Ministry of Commerce.
Fitch Ratings expected domestic demand for catering, tourism, beauty services, and cultural and entertainment activities to recover steadily in 2023.
