China plans new policies to spur consumption

China will roll out policies to restore and expand consumption in a bid to further revive domestic demand, the country's top economic regulator said on Tuesday.

Jin Xiandong, director of the Office of Policy Studies at the National Development and Reform Commission, said while the consumption market is improving with existing policies taking effect gradually, people's ability and expectation on consumption are still rather weak and the infrastructure and environment for consumption need to be improved.

Jin told a news conference held in Beijing on Tuesday that the NDRC will "promptly formulate and introduce policies to restore and expand consumption".

"With a key focus on fields including stabilizing spending on big-ticket items, spurring consumption of automobiles and electronic products, expanding rural consumption and optimizing the consumption environment, we will roll out a batch of practical and effective policy measures and strive to implement them as soon as possible," he said.

Looking forward, Jin said the commission will continue to do a good job in stabilizing employment and promoting income growth, implement employment policies and measures in a detailed manner and promote employment for key groups such as young people.

More efforts will also be made to cultivate and expand new formats and models of consumption and enrich consumer scenarios. And the NDRC will work with relevant parties to study and formulate policies for creating a better environment for consumption, Jin added. 

The world's second-largest economy grew slower than expected in the second quarter after a post-COVID bounce in the first quarter, official data showed on Monday.

China's GDP grew by 6.3 percent year-on-year in the second quarter compared with 4.5 percent in the first quarter, data released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics showed. The second-quarter growth is weaker than the 7.3 percent predicted by a Reuters poll.

Li Hui, deputy director of the NDRC's Department of National Economy, said the foundation for economic recovery is not yet solid, and the broader economy is facing pressures from a complicated international environment, a cloudy global outlook and mounting uncertainties. 

Despite challenges and risks, she said the fundamentals of the Chinese economy, characterized by strong resilience, enormous potential, great vitality and long-term sustainability, remain unchanged. 

Given China's complete industrial system, abundant human resources, ultra-large domestic market as well as strong policy support, she said the country has the confidence, conditions and capability to achieve its full-year economic and social development goals.