China's total retail sales of goods and services, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, increased by 2.8 percent year on year in the first five months of 2026, official data showed.

The retail sales of services increased by 5.4 percent in the January-May period from a year ago, and that of goods increased by 1.2 percent, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In the first five months, the total retail sales of consumer goods reached 20.6 trillion yuan (about 3.02 trillion U.S. dollars), up by 1.4 percent year on year, the data showed.

From January to May, the online retail sales of goods and services reached 8.3 trillion yuan, up by 5.9 percent year on year. Specifically, the online retail sales of food and clothing expanded by 15.5 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.

The online retail sales of services reached 3.05 trillion yuan, up by 7.6 percent, according to the NBS. (Xinhua)