Total Retail Sales of Consumer Goods in December 2025

In December, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 4,513.6 billion yuan, up by 0.9% year on year. Specifically, the retail sales of consumer goods excluding automobiles reached 3,965.4 billion yuan, up by 1.7%. In 2025, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 50,120.2 billion yuan, up by 3.7% year on year. Specifically, the retail sales of consumer goods excluding automobiles reached 45,141.3 billion yuan, up by 4.4%.

By area of business units, in December, the retail sales of consumer goods in urban areas reached 3,842.9 billion yuan, up by 0.7% year on year; those in rural areas were 670.7 billion yuan, up by 1.7%. In 2025, the retail sales of consumer goods in urban areas reached 43,297.2 billion yuan, up by 3.6% year on year; those in rural areas were 6,823.0 billion yuan, up by 4.1%.

By consumption pattern, in December, the retail sales of goods were 3,939.8 billion yuan, up by 0.7% year on year; the income of the catering industry was 573.8 billion yuan, up by 2.2%. In 2025, the retail sales of goods reached 44,322.0 billion yuan, up by 3.8% year on year; the income of the catering industry reached 5,798.2 billion yuan, up by 3.2%.

By retail format, in 2025, the retail sales of convenience stores, supermarkets, department stores, and specialty stores among retail enterprises (units) above the designated size increased by 5.5%, 4.3%, 0.1%, 2.6% year on year, respectively; those of brand-exclusive stores declined by 0.6% year on year.

In 2025, China’s online retail sales reached 15,972.2 billion yuan, up by 8.6% year on year. Specifically, the online retail sales of physical goods were 13,092.3 billion yuan, up by 5.2%, accounting for 26.1% of the total retail sales of consumer goods; among the online retail sales of physical goods, those of food, clothing, and daily necessities increased by 14.5%, 1.9%, and 4.1%, respectively.

Total Retail Sales of Consumer Goods in December 2025

Annotations:

1. Notes on indicators

Total retail sales of consumer goods refer to the revenue of enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) from sales of non-production and non-business physical goods to individuals and social groups, as well as the income obtained from providing catering services.

Online retail sales refer to the total retail sales of goods and services through public online trading platforms (including self-built websites and third-party platforms). Goods and services cover physical goods and non-physical goods (such as virtual goods, service goods, etc.).

The total retail sales of consumer goods include online retail sales of physical goods, but exclude online retail sales of non-physical goods.

2. Statistical Coverage

Legal person enterprises, industrial activity units, and self-employed individuals engaged in goods retail activities or providing catering services. Specifically, enterprises (units) above the designated size refer to wholesale enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) with an annual main business revenue of 20 million yuan or above, retail enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) with an annual main business revenue of 5 million yuan or above, and enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) providing accommodation and catering services with an annual main business revenue of 2 million yuan or above.

3. Survey Method

A comprehensive survey is conducted for enterprises (units) above the designated size, while a sampling survey is carried out for enterprises (units) below the designated size.

4. Statistical Standard

As the coverage of enterprises above the designated size (units or self-employed individuals) engaged in wholesale and retail trades, accommodation, and the catering industry changes every year, to ensure comparability between the data of the current year and those of the previous year, the year-on-year growth rates of the retail sales of consumer goods and other indicators for enterprises above the designated size are calculated based on the same statistical coverage of enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) as in the current period, which may differ from the data published for the previous year. The main reason is that each year, some enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) are included in the survey after reaching the designated standard, while others are excluded from the survey due to their smaller scale and failure to meet the designated standard. There are also influences of enterprises (units or self-employed individuals) that are newly-established, bankrupt, and have their business licenses canceled (revoked).

As the coverage of key online platforms included in the online retail sales statistics changes every year, to ensure comparability between the data of the current year and those of the previous year, the year-on-year growth rate of online retail sales is calculated based on the same statistical coverage of platforms as in the current period, which may differ from the data published for the previous year. The main reason is that every year, some platforms are included in the survey, while others are excluded due to failure to meet the requirements of the statistical system.

5. Revision of Month-on-Month Data

In accordance with the automatic correction results of the seasonal adjustment model, the month-on-month growth rates of total retail sales of consumer goods since December 2024 have been revised. The revised results and the month-on-month data of December 2025 are as follows:

6. Explanation of Year-on-Year Growth Rate

In accordance with the results of the Fifth National Economic Census, the data on the total retail sales of consumer goods and the online retail sales have been revised. Accordingly, the monthly growth rates of the total retail sales of consumer goods and the online retail sales in 2025 are calculated on a comparable basis.