Ministry of Commerce: In the first three quarters, the total profit of key contacted commodity markets increased by 5.8% year on year.

Ministry of Commerce Official from the Department of Circulation Development Discusses China's Wholesale and Retail Industry Development in January-September 2026 Since the beginning of this year, the Ministry of Commerce has thoroughly implemented the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, innovatively promoted the development of the modern commercial circulation system, and promoted the high-quality development of the wholesale and retail industry, providing strong support for comprehensively expanding domestic demand and building a strong domestic market. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in January-September, the added value of China's wholesale and retail industry was RMB11.1 trillion, up 4.4% year on year, with the growth rate 0.7 percentage points higher than that in the first half of the year, accounting for 10.4% of GDP. The industry is generally developing well, providing strong support for comprehensively expanding domestic demand and strengthening the domestic economic cycle. The wholesale and retail industry grew steadily, with innovative formats improving in quality and upgrading. From the perspective of the wholesale industry, in January-September, the total profit of key contacted commodity markets by the Ministry of Commerce increased by 5.8% year on year, among which the total profit of industrial consumer goods increased by 8.5% year on year. From the perspective of the retail industry, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in January-September, among retail enterprises above designated size, the retail sales of convenience stores and supermarkets increased by 5.2% and 4.1% year on year respectively. Physical retail is accelerating its transformation. The retail sales of warehouse membership stores and unattended stores above designated size both grew by more than 25% year on year, the retail sales growth of shopping centers exceeded double digits, and the retail sales growth of collection stores continued to accelerate. Urban and rural markets remained active, with foot traffic and consumption achieving growth. Urban commerce improved steadily. In January-September, the foot traffic and turnover of 78 pedestrian streets and business districts nationwide under key monitoring by the Ministry of Commerce increased by 5.3% and 2.5% year on year. As of September 2026, pilot areas for the 15-minute convenient living circle had built more than 9,500 convenient living circles, serving more than 190 million community residents. County-level consumption potential was unleashed. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in January-September, rural consumer goods retail sales were RMB5.01 trillion, up 2.3% year on year, 1.4 percentage points higher than the growth rate in urban areas. Consumer goods retail sales in counties and townships, including town areas and rural areas, accounted for 39.1% of total retail sales of consumer goods, up 0.3 percentage points from the same period last year. Rural e-commerce flourished. Ministry of Commerce big data showed that in January-September, national rural online retail sales were RMB2.24858 trillion, up 6.5% year on year, and Shenzhen Agricultural Power Group's online retail sales were RMB590.9 billion, up 12.6% year on year. Trade-in programs were optimized and implemented, and domestic "trendy products" were widely favored. Trade-in of consumer goods continued to gain momentum. Since 2026, trade-in of home appliances has exceeded 100.99 million units in total, and purchases of digital and smart products have exceeded 120.6 million units. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in January-September, retail sales of communication equipment by units above designated size were RMB812.3 billion, up 18.1% year on year, among which the single-month year-on-year growth in September was 31.1%, continuing to rank first among 16 categories of goods and reaching the highest level since June last year. Retail sales of wearable smart devices and energy-efficient home appliances both maintained rapid growth. Consumption of time-honored brands was active. Various localities held a total of 131 events of various types, achieving direct sales of RMB1.302 billion and driving sales of Wuxi Online Offline Communication Information Technology Co., Ltd. to RMB15.96 billion. Data from platform enterprises showed that in January-September, dine-in transaction value of China Time-honored Brand catering enterprises increased by 7.85% year on year. This article is excerpted from the official website of the "Ministry of Commerce", edited by GMTEight's Liu Jiayin.