The booming consumption figures and scenes during the May Day holiday have fully reflected the resilience and potential of China’s economy, said a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman on Thursday.
According to statistics, during the five-day holiday starting May 1, the sales revenue of consumption-related industries nationwide increased by 15.2 percent year on year, the average daily number of exits and entries made by Chinese and foreign visitors reached 2.179 million, a year on year increase of 28.7 percent, said spokesman Lin Jian at a regular press briefing in Beijing.
Lin noted the number of foreign nationals entering and leaving the country was 1.115 million, a year-on-year increase of 43.1 percent, and the sales of inbound tourism increased by about 90 percent.
“The booming holiday consumption reflects the vitality and potential of China’s booming economy. From China Travel to ‘China Shopping’, institutional opening-up measures are being transformed into real attractions for foreign tourists. At the just-concluded Canton Fair, a number of indicators such as the number of overseas buyers attending the fair and the on-site intended export transactions set new historical records. The number of leading multinational purchasing companies reached 376, a record high, reflecting that the business communities of various countries continue to be optimistic about the long-term positive development of China’s economy. The ‘China Business Environment Development Report (2025)’ recently released by China fully demonstrated the determination and sincerity of the Chinese government to continue to create a market-oriented, rule-of-law, and internationalized first-class business environment for Chinese and foreign companies,” said Lin.
Temporary storms cannot overturn the giant ship of China’s economy, nor can they stop the Chinese people from pursuing and striving for a better life, according to Lin.
“Policy innovations and market vitality have resonated concertedly. Demand releasing and supply enrichment have worked in the same direction. These are the codes of China’s economic resilience and the basis and confidence that China can withstand external risks and challenges and achieve steady high-quality development. China will always be committed to high-level opening up, win-win cooperation, and providing ‘engine power’ for world economic growth,” said Lin.
Booming holiday consumption reflects China’s economic resilience, potential: spokesman
The United States is attempting to turn the Asia-Pacific region into a powder keg to sustain its hegemony and selfish interests, said Zhang Xiaogang, spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense, at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.
Zhang made the statement in response to media reports about the U.S. defense secretary’s call for the development of the 2025 version of the national defense strategy, with a focus on deterring China in the region, and the U.S. military plan to establish a large pre-positioned stockpile in Subic Bay of the Philippines by 2026.
“In sustaining its hegemony and selfish interests, the United States has repeatedly made an issue of China and attempted to turn the Asia-Pacific region into a powder keg and certain countries into cannon fodder, which seriously impairs the safety and well-being of the people in countries in the region. Facts have proven time and again that it may be dangerous to be America’s enemy, but to be America’s friend is fatal. We advise relevant countries not to invite a wolf into their house, nor to act as chess pieces, as this would disrupt the hard-won peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region,” Zhang said.
US attempts to turn Asia-Pacific into powder keg: spokesman
