Shanghai has topped China’s consumption city list for the first half of 2021.

Total retail sales of consumer goods in Shanghai hit 904.84 billion yuan ($139.99 billion) between January and June, a 30.3% rise year-on-year.

Upgraded consumer goods led to the largest consumption growth, according to the Statistics Bureau of Shanghai.

In addition, retail sales of gold, silver and jewellery rose 72.4% year-on-year, whilst cosmetics and communication equipment registered a respective 24% and 19.2% rise, on an annual basis.

Second on the list was the capital city of Beijing with total retail sales of consumer goods reaching 722.75 billion yuan in the first half of the year, a 21% year-on-year increase.

Chengdu, located in Southwest China's Sichuan province edged out Shenzen in South China's Guangdong province to take fifth place on the list.
Shenzen was in sixth position in regard to consumption between January and June this year, followed by Suzhou, Nanjing, Wuhan and Hangzhou.

The total social consumption of the top 10 Chinese cities exceeded 300 billion yuan within the first six months of the year.

Consumption has fuelled China’s economic growth this year, with the economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis set to rally further, with enhanced consumption potential.

According to a Global Times report, Shanghai said earlier this year that it would support brands in the opening of more flagship and experience stores, as well as upgrade international hubs’ headquarters in China.

In addition, it would look into streamlining regulations for commodity inspection and customs clearance, along with Chinese labelling of seasonally limited cosmetic products that meet specific conditions.