The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced Friday that retail sales grew 9.1 percent to 342.2 billion yuan (US$41.22 billion) in September.

NBS figures show that in the first nine months of the year, retail sales in urban areas surged 9.8 percent year-on-year to 1.849 trillion yuan (US$222.75 billion), while retail sales in rural areas grew 6.8 percent year-on-year to 1.062 trillion yuan (US$127.98 billion).

The wholesale and retail industry registered annual growth of 8.8 percent in the same period, with sales totaling 1.99 trillion yuan (US$239.76 billion). The restaurant and catering industry boomed with sales climbing 16.1 percent year-on-year to over 356 billion yuan (US$42.89 billion).

Sales in other trades totaled 565.5 billion yuan (US$68.13 billion), increasing 3.8 percent over the same period last year.

Sales of food, clothing and daily necessities grew by 14.1 percent, 11.1 percent and 17.7 percent respectively. Sales of communication equipment rose by 62.4 percent compared with the same period last year, and those of automobiles and building materials grew by 58 percent and 28.8 percent respectively.

The NBS attributes the fast growth to four factors. The developing economy and guaranteed income for low-income urban dwellers have both increased people's purchasing power, while group purchasing has also become more popular, and sales of communication equipment, automobiles and houses have remained brisk.

(Xinhua News Agency October 19, 2002)