Shanghai's Total Retail Sales of Consumer Goods Grew 7.8% Year-on-Year in July

　　According to a report by The Paper on August 22 from the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, in July this year, Shanghai's total retail sales of consumer goods reached 129.138 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.8%. The revitalized vitality of Shanghai's business districts contributed to the accelerated growth of the total retail sales in July.

　　The Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce revealed that from January to June, the total retail sales reached 826.04 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.7%, with the growth rate accelerating by 0.3 percentage points compared to the period from January to May. Among these, retail product categories related to business districts, such as apparel and textiles, high-quality food, and communication equipment, were favored by consumers and saw growth above the average level.

　　According to a special plan for Shanghai's commercial space layout, data monitoring conducted by the Open Strategy Research Center of the Municipal Commission of Commerce on 50 key municipal and regional business districts showed that in the first half of this year, both the retail sales scale and passenger flow热度 (popularity) of these business districts exhibited growth trends. From January to June, the retail sales of the 50 key business districts under monitoring increased by 2.7% year-on-year, with a growth rate 1 percentage point higher than the overall retail sales. The retail sales scale reached the highest level since the "14th Five-Year Plan" period. Among them, 19 business districts saw year-on-year retail sales growth exceeding 10%, with the Expo, Yuyuan, and Zhenru business districts ranking top three in growth rate.

　　On August 20, the largest "Coming of Age" concert since the debut of the group Time Youth League—"Champion" Shanghai Station—officially kicked off at the Shanghai Stadium. On the first day of the concert, the nearby Xujiahui business district attracted nearly 200,000 visitor trips, with sales exceeding 20 million yuan. Feizhou International, taking advantage of its geographical location, saw nearly 80,000 visitor trips, and its sales increased by over 70% week-on-week. It is predicted that during the concert period from August 20 to 24, nearly 300,000 people will participate in attending the concert and related consumption, efficiently converting the concert attendance flow into "economic retention."

　　Zhang Guohua, a first-level inspector of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, revealed that first-class business districts are shining name cards of a city's image, an important reflection of urban vitality, and a crucial engine supporting high-quality economic development. Since Shanghai proposed building an international consumption center city, creating world-class business districts has become an important strategic goal.