In 2023, as the lagged impact of the epidemic subsides, the economy will shift to normal operation, and consumption will show a positive trend. At the same time, consumption upgrading has shown a series of new trends, highlighting the resilience and vitality of China's economy.
First, the high-end consumption of goods. Residents' consumption has shifted from focusing on quantity satisfaction to pursuing qualitative improvement, and the demand for quality, quality and brand of products and services is increasing day by day.
The second is the servitization of consumption structure. The per capita consumption expenditure on services increased by 14 percent4%, accounting for 45% of the per capita consumption expenditure of residents2%, communication services, public catering, culture and entertainment and other service consumption have become new hot spots.
The third is the networking of consumption patterns. With the help of e-commerce platforms, the retail industry has realized the integrated development of online and offline, and online retail has been integrated into the daily life of residents. In 2023, the online retail sales of physical goods in China will exceed 13 trillion yuan.
Fourth, consumer products are intelligent. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology and the rapid popularization of voice interaction systems, smart phones, smart homes, and intelligent networked vehicles have widely penetrated into residents' lives.
Fifth, the main consumer is younger. The new generation of consumer groups growing up in the Internet era pay more attention to product quality and cost performance, pursue fashion and brand, and are willing to try new things, which has become an important force for consumer innovation.
Sixth, urban consumption platform. Large-scale commercial complexes that integrate commercial retail, catering, leisure and entertainment and other service functions, and provide comprehensive services have become an important carrier of urban consumption. The role of consumer Internet platform enterprises in promoting urban consumption continues to increase.
Seventh, the integration of urban and rural consumption. With the acceleration of the implementation of network infrastructure to rural areas and the implementation of "express delivery to villages", online retail continues to extend to rural areas, while high-quality agricultural products enter cities through online sales, and urban and rural consumption is becoming increasingly integrated.
Eighth, the greening of mass consumption. Enterprises are paying more attention to ESG development, and consumer demand for green products continues to grow. The production and sales of new energy vehicles exceeded 9 million, with a market share of more than 30%.
Nine is the normalization of healthy consumption. With the continuous expansion of the elderly population, age-appropriate innovation has become a new increase in consumption, and healthy consumption based on the silver economy has become a new hot spot.
Tenth, the internationalization of domestic consumption. We will give full play to the role of important platforms such as the CIIE, expand diversified import channels, improve the level of import facilitation, and purchase foreign goods through outbound tourism and "overseas shopping", which has promoted the integration of the domestic market and the global consumer market.
A new round of consumption upgrading and a wave of digital intelligent technology innovation has formed a historical convergence, digital intelligent technology has widely penetrated into the consumer field, and consumption innovation and reform have shown great vitality. The rise of new consumption has accelerated, and it has become an important force for innovating business models and activating consumption potential.
The application of digital intelligent technology has spread from a single point breakthrough to the whole chain, giving birth to new business models. Real-time point-to-point supply has been achieved in the retail sector, and new formats such as e-commerce direct supply and unmanned retail have been expanded. The intelligent level of the chain has been continuously improved, and the collaborative efficiency of the system has been improved.
Digitalization and intelligence reshape the enterprise and industry ecology. At the enterprise level, digital intelligent technology is penetrating from the front-end links such as customer drainage, first-class orders, and after-sales service to the back-end links such as first-chain management, personnel management, and operational decision-making. At the industry level, network and digital technologies are extending upstream and downstream along the industrial chain, promoting the digitalization of the entire chain of business processes such as material procurement, logistics, processing, retail, distribution, and financing services, forming a new industry ecosystem.
Facing the future, it is necessary to take the initiative to embrace the new wave of consumption innovation and reform, encourage the development of new consumption, promote the digital and intelligent transformation of consumption, cultivate the consumption innovation ecology, and inject new momentum into the expansion and quality improvement of consumption and high-quality economic development.
Encourage the development of new types of consumption. New consumption is an important way to restore and expand consumption. It is necessary to use digital intelligent technology to accelerate the deep integration of online and offline consumption, accelerate the cultivation of new consumption models and new formats, innovate consumption scenarios, and expand consumption space.
Promote the digital and intelligent transformation of consumption. Encourage the digital and intelligent transformation of different sub-industries, and promote the popularization and use of SaaS and other systems in small and medium-sized service enterprises. Through tax deductions and financial subsidies, we will solve the financial problem in the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises. Strengthen the construction of new infrastructure, develop instant distribution networks, and cultivate smart services.
Cultivating a consumer innovation ecosystem. Create a market environment of fair competition, improve inclusive and prudential supervision methods, support the development of new forms and models of consumption, and implement corresponding regulatory rules and standards by category. Improve the consumer rights protection system.
From the perspective of development trends, the advantages of China's super-large-scale market are becoming increasingly apparent, and the demand for high-quality products and services continues to be released, giving birth to a huge driving force for consumption innovation and change. China has the world's most complete industrial system and continuous enhancement of scientific and technological innovation capabilities, the quality of the supply system continues to improve, the conditions supporting consumption innovation and reform continue to improve, and the fundamental and leading role of consumption in China's economy will continue to increase.
The author, Wang Yiming, is vice chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges (**Economy**).