Copyright 2024 - Ningbo Life / Ningbo Expat

Ningbo ranks among top in per capita consumption expenditure

In 2022, affected by multiple factors, the consumption desire and consumption behavior of the national residents were generally in a downturn trend: the per capita consumption expenditure of residents stood at 24,538 yuan, with a nominal increase of 1.8%, far less than the per capita disposable income growth (an increase of 5.0%).

According to the analysis of the per capita consumption expenditure of residents in some key cities in the Yangtze River Delta area (including the municipality directly under the Central Government, sub-provincial cities, provincial capitals and cities with a GDP above one trillion yuan) by the Ningbo Evening News, the per capita consumption expenditure performance of many cities is not ideal. However, over the past year, Ningbo has performed well in terms of per capita consumption expenditure, ranking among the top three cities in the Yangtze River Delta, with a considerable growth rate.

Ningbo’s consumption grows considerably

Among the seven major cities in the Yangtze River Delta area, Hangzhou, Shanghai and Ningbo rank among the top three in terms of per capita consumption expenditure in 2022, with the amount of 46,440 yuan, 46,045 yuan and 42,997 yuan respectively.

To be specific, Hangzhou won the championship by virtue of its 4.1% growth rate and Shanghai came the second place, with a negative growth.

Ningbo surpassed Suzhou, ranking No.3. It is worth mentioning that Ningbo’s per capita consumption expenditure increased by 6.2% year on year, which is the leading one of the seven major cities in the Yangtze River Delta area.

Reasons behind the growth

Just like Hangzhou, Ningbo didn’t suffer from the citywide static management. From the perspective of the growth rate of total retail sales of consumer goods in 2022, Hangzhou achieved a year-on-year growth rate of 5.8%, and Ningbo, 5.3%, ranking No.1 and No.2 in all the cities with the GDP of over one trillion yuan.

In addition, besides Hangzhou, Shanghai and Ningbo, three other major cities in the Yangtze River Delta area achieved the per capita consumption expenditure of over 40,000 yuan, namely Suzhou, Wuxi and Nanjing. Wuxi and Nanjing maintained a relatively high growth rate, and the per capita consumption expenditure of them exceeded 40,000 yuan for the first time.

Ningbo ranks No.3 in terms of consumption desire

However, the strong consumption ability does not mean that the residents are  willing to consume. The consumption of residents in a city is affected by income, prices, market prosperity and other factors. Strong consumption capacity may also be the result of higher prices.

In 2022, the per capita consumption expenditure of the national residents accounted for 66.53% of the per capita disposable income. In other words, when people earn 100 yuan, they will spend 66.53 yuan for consumption.

In 2022, the per capita disposable income of Ningbo residents stood at 68,348 yuan, a nominal increase of 4.5% year-on-year, and a real increase of 2.2% after deducting price factors.

The per capita living consumption expenditure of Ningbo was 42,977 yuan, up by 6.2% year on year. That is to say, the per capita consumption expenditure of Ningbo residents accounted for 62.88% of the per capita disposable income in 2022. Ningbo residents spent 62.88 yuan for consumption for every 100 yuan they earned.

For all the seven key cities in the Yangtze River Delta area, the per capita consumption expenditure of residents in Hangzhou, Nantong, Ningbo, Wuxi, Suzhou, Nanjing and Shanghai accounted for 66.08%, 63.06%, 62.88%, 62.87%, 60.56%, 58.39% and 57.84% of the per capita disposable income respectively.

That is, Ningbo also ranks among the top three in terms of consumption desire of residents.

However, it is worth mentioning that although the total retail sales of social consumer goods in Ningbo ranked 16th in 2022 among all the cities with a GDP above one trillion yuan, two places higher than the previous year, it is still four places lower than its GDP ranking. That means there is still room for improvement in the consumption capacity of Ningbo residents.

In this regard, Yin Qiuping, director of the Consumption Promotion Division of Ningbo Bureau of Commerce, believes that this is related to the relatively cautious consumption psychology and behavior of Ningbo residents. On the other hand, Ningbo has a relatively high house price, the pressure of residents’ living and savings is relatively high, and thus consumption is relatively limited. In the meantime, Ningbo residents have a high desire to consume in education and other service consumption areas, which has a certain impact on the increase of the total amount of retail sales of social consumer goods.

What do people buy?

The whole picture of consumer’s life in each city covers not only how much money has been spent but on what the money has been spent.

Then what do people buy with the money? From the perspective of major commodity categories above the designated size, the retail sales of automobiles reached 72.01 billion yuan, up by 9.7% year on year, including 80.3% increase in new energy vehicles. The retail sales of food and beverage, and tobacco and alcohol reached 22.9 billion yuan, up by 23.3% year on year. The retail sales of household appliances and audio-visual products reached 11.37 billion yuan, up by 24.2% year on year. The retail sales of clothing, shoes and hats, and textiles reached 27.32 billion yuan, down by 4.1% year on year.

In terms of customer groups, Ningbo’s local and non-local customers accounted for 85% and 15% respectively. The proportion of non-local customers is relatively low, with a large gap with such cities as Hangzhou, Nanjing, and Hefei. Local consumers of Ningbo contributed to 90% of the turnover of such commercial complexes as Heyi Avenue, Sakai Outlets, and Sakui Department Store

f t g m