Chinese tourists headed out in greater numbers during the recent five-day Labor Day holiday but kept a tight grip on their wallets, reflecting still weak sentiment in the world’s second-largest economy.
Travelers made 28.2% more trips, but spending rose only 13.5% from the 2019 holiday, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism said in a statement on Monday. This translates into an 11.5% drop in spending for each traveler during the holiday that ended on Sunday, according to banks including Societe Generale, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.
“Per capita spending has weakened and is back below pre-pandemic levels, partly due to more tourist flows to lower-tier cities, indicating a continued downward trend in consumption,” said Goldman economists including Lisheng Wang, in a note late Monday, adding that more policy support is needed to support the service sector’s recovery. The 2019 holiday was one day shorter.
