China Unveils 1st 5-Year Blueprint Focused on Spurring Consumption
By Reuters | 13 Jul, 2026

China pledged to raise household incomes and "significantly" increase household consumption's share of the economy from around 40% at present to around $9 trillion by 2030.

People walk along a shopping street in Shanghai, China, July 1, 2026. REUTERS/Go Nakamura

China will aim for annual retail sales of around 60 trillion yuan ($9 trillion) by 2030 under its first five-year plan focusing on consumption, implying a slowdown in yearly growth to about 3.7% from the roughly 5% recorded from 2021 to 2025.

China also pledged to raise household incomes and "significantly" increase household consumption's share of the economy from around 40% at present.

The annual retail sales growth target reflects weakening momentum in goods consumption, and policymakers are seeking to make household spending a stronger driver of growth.

The plan, approved by the State Council — China's cabinet — and released on Monday, puts greater emphasis on services consumption, targeting areas including elderly care, childcare, healthcare, culture, tourism, sports and education.

"By 2030, the overall scale of the consumer market will continue to expand, the household consumption rate will rise markedly, ... and consumption's role in driving economic growth will be further strengthened," the cabinet said in China's first five-year plan dedicated to boosting consumption. It said the share of per capita spending on services in overall household outlays would steadily increase.

The plan also calls for stronger tourism-related spending, an expansion of visa-free entry to more countries, and more direct international flights to Europe, the U.S. and countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

China’s services spending has outpaced goods consumption growth in recent years but still lags far behind developed economies. Per capita services consumption accounted for 46.1% of total consumption in 2025, well below the roughly 70% seen in the United States.

Some government economists have called for long-promised income and welfare reforms, as the economy faces a deepening imbalance between strong industrial output — supported by exports — and weak domestic consumption.

The plan said China's social security system would become more "optimised and sustainable," giving people greater confidence to spend and more stable expectations.

Beijing will promote new consumption models including digital consumption, AI-powered consumption, green consumption, experiential spending, and inbound consumption, according to the plan.

The plan also highlights the need to lift household spending power through higher wages, more property income, improved social security and better public services, while pledging to remove "unreasonable restrictive measures" in areas such as car purchases, housing and approvals for entertainment events.

Fiscal and financial policy should place greater emphasis on direct benefits to consumers, livelihood spending and consumption-related infrastructure, the plan said.

($1 = 6.7803 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Beijing Newsroom and Kevin Yao; Editing by Alison Williams and Hugh Lawson)