China's retail business index 'recovers significantly' - 51.1 in January - Chinese report

According to the China Federation of Commerce, China's retail business index showed a remarkable recovery in January, indicating that retailers' confidence in the consumer market is steadily increasing.
According to the latest data released by the association, the retail trade index for January was 51.1, down 0.7 points from the previous month.
The index for merchandise management rose 1.8 points from the previous month to 51.8. The profit level and average customer spending level indexes were 4.9 and 4.9 respectively.
The data shows that the Chinese New Year is approaching, and the implementation of the Lunar New Year goods consumption and replacement policy will lead to a rise in the number of Chinese New Year goods.
Purchasing of goods in rural markets became even more active, driving increased consumption.