China accommodations, catering retail sales up 18.9% in Q1 [CFP]

Retail sales of China's accommodations and catering sector rose 18.9 percent year on year to 438.3 billion yuan (US$64 billion) in the first quarter, said the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) Friday.

The growth slowed by 4.7 percentage points from that of the same period last year, said the MOC, as the economic downturn continued to affect the industry.

In March alone, retail sales was up 18.7 percent year on year to 136.7 billion yuan.

In the first quarter, 96 foreign-invested accommodations and catering firms were established across China, down 42.9 percent from the figure a year ago. The amount of actually used foreign investment fell 20.7 percent year on year to US$200 million, said the MOC.

(Xinhua News Agency April 18, 2009)