Key facts
- Average spending per domestic trip during Golden Week fell to a four-year low.
- Chinese consumers increasingly chose longer overseas trips.
- Cinema box office revenue saw a significant decline.
- Consumer spending remains weak due to property downturn and job market concerns.
Chinese consumers spent less per trip during the recent Golden Week holiday, reaching a four-year low and raising concerns about broader economic recovery. Despite hopes for a spending boost, travelers opted for longer overseas trips, significantly increasing foreign hotel bookings. The domestic cinema market also experienced a sharp decline in revenue.
Average spending per domestic trip fell 1.9% to 893.92 yuan ($133.51) from 911.04 yuan a year earlier, according to government data. This marks the lowest level since 2022. The seven-day holiday, which began October 1, was one day shorter than last year, but many combined it with the Mid-Autumn Festival to create longer vacation periods.
More than half of outbound overseas flight bookings were made before October 1, with average trip lengths exceeding nine days, according to Trip.com Group. Foreign hotel stays of at least seven nights rose 123% year-on-year. Meanwhile, holiday cinema revenue totaled 1.16 billion yuan, down 36.6% from the previous year and the lowest for the National Day holiday period.