Consumer spending rises in June

Chinese consumers spent more money on catering, entertainment and tourism in June, prompting a rise of 0.56 percentage point on Bankcard Consumption Confidence Index over the previous month, according to statistics released by China UnionPay and Xinhua News Agency on Wednesday.

World Cup tournament has boosted the consumption of non-daily activities, such as eating out at high-end restaurants and recreation, the main contributors that helped lift the index, a quota that calculates the proportion of non-daily necessities among overall consumption.

Meanwhile, with summer approaching, tourism industry posted solid growth. In June, travel-related credit card transactions rose 17.5 percent compared with May. Sales of plane and railway tickets increased 13.06 percent and 44.36 percent month-on-month respectively.

The index is expected to keep rising in the second half of the year as domestic economy continues to stabilize and recover. Moreover, the loosening of loan–to-deposit ratio and China's shift to a consumer-driven economy are likely to push forward the rise of the index.