Multiple Ways towards a Dynamic Domestic Market

Multiple Ways towards a Dynamic Domestic Market

The China General Chamber of Commerce and China National Commercial Information Center jointly held a press conference recently in Beijing to release the statistics of commodity sales on the China market for 2019.

In the report that was released， it was predicted that in 2019， a dynamic domestic market is the target in a bid to support the smooth operation of the economy， and the growth rate of the consumer goods market is expected to reach 8.5 percent in 2019.

For five consecutive years， consumption has been the key driver of Chinas economic growth， according to the report. The consumer goods market showed five basic trends： online shopping grew faster than that in brick-and-mortar stores， rural consumption grew faster than urban consumption， revenues of the food and beverage sector grew faster than those of commodity retail， small， micro， and innovative businesses developed actively， and the sales growth of large retail enterprises slowed down.

In 2019， China will take concrete measures towards establishing a strong domestic market， with the priority on expanding employment. Investment in basic livelihood will keep increasing， and policies for education， medical care， and old-age care will continue to improve. Consumer demand will be stimulated in multiple ways. The consumer market environment will also be optimized to enhance consumers confidence.

China Is the Most Promising Coffee Consumption Market

According to statistics from the International Coffee Organization， Chinas coffee consumption is growing at an annual rate of about 15 percent， much higher than the global average growth rate of two percent.

In order to compete for the huge market， multinational coffee giants have accelerated their layout in China， especially in terms of expanding their territories outside the firsttier cities. This tends to dwarf Chinas domestic coffee brands on the one hand， while stimulating its thinking on the other. First， the role of coffee shops as a place for social life should not be ignored. For young Chinese consumers who value time and health more， a coffee shop is a perfect place for social communication and business interaction. Therefore the atmosphere of a coffee shop needs to be valued.

In addition， unlike most local coffee shops which make money only by selling drinks， multinational coffee shop chains are also selling coffee beans， coffee-makers， and a series of cultural creative products， which contribute quite a lot of revenue. For example， Starbucks sold out all 3，000“cat paw” cups seconds after its launch began. In order to provide consumers with more services and a better consumption experience， some domestic coffee shops are selling more books or organizing salons.

Clean Energy Keeps Developing

Clean energy accounted for 22.2 percent of Chinas total primary energy consumption in 2018， up 7.7 percentage points from 2012， but still coming short of the targets of 25 percent for 2020 and 35 percent for 2030， Lin Shanqing， deputy chief of Chinas National Energy Administration， said in Berlin on April 9.

Lin attended the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue（BETD） and gave a speech at a sub-forum. He said that as the worlds largest energy producer and consumer， China pursues innovative， coordinated， green， open， and shared development， and has achieved many positive results in energy transition and development.

However， new problems always emerge along with the progress of energy transition. During the transition， China has encountered challenges brought about by global climate change， ecological protection， imbalanced energy structure， etc.

Lin said China has formed three strategies in response to these challenges. First， increase the share of clean energy through a structural adjustment of energy consumption. Second， reduce the cost of clean energy through technological innovation. Third， develop renewable energy that is not confined only to certain places.

Chinas Green Super Rice Promoted in 18 Countries

Led by the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences （CAAS）， the international agricultural poverty alleviation project of cultivating green super rice for resource-deficient regions in Asia and Africa was launched in 2008. Since then， 78 varieties of rice with high yields， high quality， and ability to resist multiple diseases have been tested， approved， and promoted in 18 African and Asian countries， covering a total area of 6.12 million hectares.

“Green super rice” not only refers to new varieties， but also represents the new concept of resource-saving and environment-friendly breeding， and a cultivation and management mode of high yields， high efficiency， ecological friendliness， and safety.

The project is co-funded by the Chinese government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation， and is led by Li Zhikang， a researcher at the Institute of Crop Sciences at CAAS. Besides， a total of 58 crop institutes from home and abroad are participating in it.

The 10-year goal of the project is to cultivate and promote new varieties in relevant countries and regions and the five provinces in western China. By doing this， they will increase the average rice production capacity of small farmers by more than 20 percent， and significantly increase the income of over 30 million farmers in the target countries.

Gary Atlin， a senior program officer at the Gates Foundation， revealed that the program has met the expectations and that some rice varieties developed by China are playing a bigger role in tropical countries than expected.