Online shopping has become a daily routine for people across China, spanning generations from Gen Z to the elderly. Today, the country has 976 million online shoppers, reflecting the vast scale of its digital consumer base.

According to data released by China’s Ministry of Commerce, the country’s digital consumption has expanded in both scale and quality during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025). Total digital consumption has exceeded 23.8 trillion yuan ($3.45 trillion), and China has remained the world’s largest online retail market for 13 consecutive years.

China’s online consumption continues to show strong growth. In 2025, online retail sales reached 15.97 trillion yuan, up 8.6 percent year on year, 1.4 percentage points faster than the previous year. Of this, online retail sales of physical goods totaled 13.09 trillion yuan, rising 5.2 percent and contributing 1.3 percentage points to the growth of total retail sales of consumer goods.

New business models such as livestream e-commerce and instant retail have expanded rapidly. Livestream e-commerce maintained steady growth, with transaction volume rising 11.3 percent in 2025, while the rapid development of instant delivery services has enabled faster and more efficient fulfillment of consumer demand.

This impressive performance highlights the dual upgrade of scale and quality in China’s digital consumption.

Online retail is also driving consumption upgrading and improving people’s well-being. Convenient and efficient online shopping has become standard for Chinese consumers. According to commerce big data monitoring, online retail sales of digital products such as smartphones and intelligent robots grew by 20.5 percent and 18 percent, respectively, in 2025. Online retail is fueling the rise of smart, quality-oriented, and green consumption.

China has built the world’s largest delivery network with the widest coverage, benefiting a range of groups from consumers in first-tier cities to farmers in remote rural areas. This network now reaches nearly all townships, with courier services covering more than 95 percent of administrative villages. In 2025, 199 billion parcels were handled across the country.

This network has eliminated geographic barriers and streamlined distribution channels, bringing the convenience of “order with a tap, deliver to your doorstep” within reach of households across the country.

Online retail is also accelerating industrial transformation and injecting momentum into high-quality development. E-commerce has improved the alignment between supply and demand, stimulating endogenous growth in China’s industries. In 2025, online retail sales in rural areas and of agricultural products grew by 6.7 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively, while e-commerce transactions in the textile and pharmaceutical sectors rose by 6.6 percent and 3.8 percent, respectively. At the same time, the sector has driven rapid growth in logistics, communications software, and artificial intelligence.

Beyond domestic markets, online retail is strengthening connections between China and the rest of the world, fostering mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. Chilean cherries and Peruvian blueberries have become popular among Chinese consumers, while Chinese-made robotic vacuum cleaners and heaters are selling well overseas. China’s online retail “circle of friends” continues to expand, bringing global products to Chinese consumers and offering more diverse and abundant choices to the world.

In 2025, the number of partner countries under the Silk Road E-commerce initiative increased to 36. In Shanghai, a pilot zone for Silk Road E-commerce cooperation has introduced and promoted 12 institutional innovations, including mutual recognition of digital identities across borders. According to statistics, retail sales on key cross-border e-commerce import platforms grew by 5.6 percent in 2025.

The 4th Global Digital Trade Expo was joined by 1,812 enterprises from 154 countries and regions, setting a new record. A total of 382 new products, technologies, and services were launched, showcased, or exhibited for the first time, an increase of nearly 90 percent, demonstrating how e-commerce is contributing to more inclusive and mutually beneficial economic globalization.

By Wang Ke, Lin Ziye

Source: People’s Daily