China's retail¹ sales of consumer goods rose 7.2 percent year on year to over 3 trillion yuan (436 billion U.S. dollars) in April, official data showed Wednesday.

 

官方数据显示，四月份中国日用消费品零售额年同比增长7.2%，达到3万亿元（4360亿美元）。

 

The growth narrowed from an increase of 8.7 percent registered in March, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

 

The indicator² of consumption rose 8 percent year on year in the January-April period, down from the 8.3-percent rise seen in the first quarter, according to the NBS.

 

Wednesday's data also showed consumption in rural areas climbed 7.8 percent, outpacing a rise of 7.1 percent in urban regions. The catering³ industry reported a 8.5-percent increase in revenue.

 

Online retail sales maintained robust⁴ growth, surging 17.8 percent in the first four months, quickening from the 15.3-percent growth in the first quarter.

 

With a market of nearly 1.4 billion increasingly prosperous population, China strives to make consumption a major driver of its economic growth.

点击收听单词发音