Supported by the national consumer goods trade-in program, the 618 midyear shopping festival sent sales of major Chinese and international brands soaring, particularly for digital products. Sales figures from platforms showed continued consumer enthusiasm for trade-in deals, with experts highlighting the strong consumption momentum in the Chinese market.
A standout among foreign brands, Apple saw a sharp sales boost after joining the national subsidy program. With steeper discounts, the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max have remained the top two of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com's 618 daily smartphone sales rankings for 36 consecutive days, while also dominating the top three places on the cumulative sales chart alongside the iPhone 16.
As of press time on Wednesday, the US-based company led both the single-day and cumulative smartphone sales charts for the 618 shopping festival, outperforming all other brands.
In addition, Chinese brand Xiaomi has held the second spot on the daily sales chart. According to the company's sales report for the 618 shopping festival, Xiaomi's total transaction volume across all platforms had exceeded 16.9 billion yuan ($2.35 billion) as of May 31.
The subsidy-driven 618 shopping festival has seen sharp discounts on flagship smartphones. Apple's iPhone 16 Pro was included in the government's consumer goods trade-in program for the first time, with discounts of up to 2,500 yuan this time through Chinese e-commerce giant Tmall.
Apple's sales on the platform surpassed the total transaction volume of the first day of last year's 618 event within just 20 minutes of the launch this year, the company told the Global Times in a statement on Wednesday.
During the first phase of the 618 shopping festival from May 13 to 26, sales of products eligible for the consumer goods trade-in program - more than 40 brands, including Apple, Xiaomi, Huawei, and Sony - each recorded sales exceeding 100 million yuan, according to Tmall.
From May 1 to June 7, China's smartphone sales reached 30.2 million units, a year-on-year increase of more than 8 percent, according to data from International Data Corp, signaling a continuous consumption momentum.
China's 618 shopping festival subsidy program makes no distinction between domestic and foreign brands this year, allowing all manufacturers to compete on an equal footing under a unified policy framework, said Bian Yongzu, an executive deputy editor-in-chief of Modernization of Management magazine.
For foreign brands, this represents a significant opportunity to strengthen their foothold in the Chinese market and attract more consumers, as such incentives are rare globally and largely unique to China's proactive approach to stimulating consumption, Bian told the Global Times on Wednesday.
The program also drove strong double-digit year-on-year growth across sectors such as computers, digital electronics, home appliances, and home decor, with more than 3,000 brands doubling their sales in the first sales phase, highlighting strong consumer momentum, according to Tmall.
The strong appeal of policy incentives, particularly the ongoing consumer goods trade-in program, has unlocked consumer potential in the Chinese market, stimulated upgrade demand, and created new sales opportunities for global smartphone brands, while easing replacement costs for consumers, Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
Bian emphasized that China's sizable middle-income population and resilient economic momentum provide a strong foundation for the consumer electronics market. With well-established events such as the 618 shopping festival and Double 11 shopping festival further driving consumer enthusiasm and upgrade demand, the Chinese market has become a strategic battleground for foreign smartphone brands, he added.
China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, expanded 6.4 percent year-on-year in May, reaching 4.13 trillion yuan, according to official data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday.
Fu Linghui, an official from the NBS, told a press conference on Monday that the 618 shopping festival, combined with the consumer goods trade-in program, accelerated online retail sales, which becomes a major driving force for domestic consumption market.
(Source: Global Times)