--- title: "How to interpret the recovery of domestic social retail in January and February?" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/279207471.md" description: "On March 16, the National Bureau of Statistics announced that the total retail sales of consumer goods in China for January-February amounted to 8.6079 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.8%. Among them, retail sales of consumer goods excluding automobiles grew by 3.7%. The market reacted positively to the consumer sector, with the food and beverage sector performing outstandingly. Although local two sessions have lowered the target for retail sales growth, policies still support a demand-driven strategy. The current consumer market is at a turning point of recovery intertwined with policies, and investors may focus on low-level recovery opportunities, suggesting regular investment in related ETFs" datetime: "2026-03-16T05:09:17.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/279207471.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/279207471.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/279207471.md) --- # How to interpret the recovery of domestic social retail in January and February? On March 16th (Monday) at 10 AM, the National Bureau of Statistics disclosed retail sales data: In January and February, the total retail sales of consumer goods in China reached 8.6079 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 2.8%. Among them, retail sales of consumer goods excluding automobiles amounted to 7.9827 trillion yuan, growing by 3.7%. The secondary market responded positively during the session, with the food and beverage sector performing against the trend, leading the market with gains in segments such as liquor, food prices, condiments, and soft drinks. Industry insiders pointed out that during the previous local two sessions, most provinces lowered their retail sales growth targets for 2026, which once triggered further pessimistic pricing in the consumer sector. In fact, considering the two sessions' annual GDP target set at a flexible range of 4.5% to 5%, this reflects the policy's emphasis on high-quality development and a people-centered approach, without affecting the acknowledgment of the "domestic demand-led" strategic position. The extremely low base still provides elasticity for consumer recovery. The overall consumer sector has seen a continuous decline for five years, with market performance severely lagging behind the broader market. It is currently at a turning point of weak recovery and strong policy support. Investors can consider dollar-cost averaging into ETFs and their connect funds, positioning themselves for low-level recovery opportunities in the consumer sector. The Food and Beverage ETF (515170.SH) tracks the CSI Sub-Industry Food and Beverage Theme Index, focusing more on leading brands with strong market management capabilities, as well as quality regional liquor companies benefiting from state-owned enterprise integration, compared to pure liquor ETFs. (Connect C: 013126, Connect A: 013125); The Food ETF Huaxia (159151.SZ) tracks the CSI All-Share Food Index, covering leading stocks in sub-sectors such as condiments, dairy products, meat products, and snacks. Compared to traditional food and beverage indices, the all-share food index completely excludes liquor and beer, making it more aligned with daily consumer needs and demonstrating stronger resilience in essential demand; The Consumer Discretionary ETF (562580.SH) tracks the CSI All-Share Consumer Discretionary Index, excluding food and beverages, focusing on sectors such as automobiles, home appliances, and retail, benefiting from the continuation of the "two new" national subsidy policies; The Tourism ETF (562510.SH) tracks the CSI Sub-Industry Tourism Index, focusing on service consumption and excluding commodity consumption, covering sub-sectors such as duty-free, airlines, and hotel dining; The Hong Kong Stock Connect Consumer ETF Huaxia (513230.SH) tracks the CSI Hong Kong Stock Connect Consumer Theme Index, including new consumption high-elasticity assets such as trendy toys and gold jewelry, supporting T+0 intraday trading ### Related Stocks - [159520.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159520.CN.md) - [159843.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159843.CN.md) - [159928.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159928.CN.md) - [159862.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159862.CN.md) - [159736.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159736.CN.md) - [510630.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/510630.CN.md) - [515170.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/515170.CN.md) - [159725.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159725.CN.md) - [159798.CN](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/159798.CN.md) ## Related News & Research - [ZAWYA: Hany Arram during his participation in the 9th edition of “The Marketers League” at the Grand Egyptian Museum](https://longbridge.com/en/news/286071699.md) - [06:31 ETS.Pellegrino lanza su campaña global con Lewis Hamilton y una Edición Limitada](https://longbridge.com/en/news/285058031.md) - [AOM International Bets on Fujian Laojiu Stewed Pot Chain to Drive Wine-Linked F&B Growth](https://longbridge.com/en/news/283149059.md) - [Premium Beer Strategy Swells Profit Margins at Chinese Brewers](https://longbridge.com/en/news/285556696.md) - [DOJ plans to settle Agri Stats case, White House official says](https://longbridge.com/en/news/285093772.md)