| Consensus | Consensus Range | Actual | Previous | |
| Month over Month | 0.38% | -0.38% | ||
| Year over Year | -0.1% | -0.2% to 0.4% | 1.0% | -0.6% |
Highlights
Chinese retail sales rose 1.0 percent on the year in June, rebounding from a fall of 0.6 percent in May and above the consensus forecast for a fall of 0.1 percent. In month-over-month terms, retail sales rose 0.38 percent after a previous decline of 0.38 percent.
In their statement accompanying today's data, officials characterised the data as showing the economy"continued to demonstrate strong resilience". Although officials did not explicitly refer to the Iran conflict, they again expressed caution about the external environment, noting that it is"becoming increasingly unstable and uncertain". Officials characterised their policies as"more proactive and vigorous", a slight change from last month's phrase of"more proactive and effective", but they provided no guidance about whether changes to policy settings will be considered in the near-term.
Market Consensus Before Announcement
Sales seen down 0.1 percent on year in June after declining 0.6 percent in May.
Definition
Retail Sales measure goods that are sold to the consumer or end-user, generally in small quantities and in the state in which they were purchased by the retailer. China's retail sales are reported monthly. The critical value is the change from the same month in the previous year.
Description
Retail sales tend to have a muted impact because the Chinese economy is not heavily reliant on consumer spending. However, the government is trying to stimulate consumer spending to give the economy more balance. To this end, the government put into place a basket of stimulus measures, including government subsidies and tax breaks for home appliances and cars, to expand consumption to sustain the economic growth, which was slowed by a slump in exports amid the global economic downturn.