The consumer market continued to recover and service consumption grew rapidly, an NBS statement said.

"Domestic demand kept growing," NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui told a press conference. "The service consumption, such as summer vacation tourism, picked up markedly, offering significant support for expanding consumption."

Online retail sales rose by 12.5 per cent in the first seven months this year, and service sales surged by 20.3 per cent, a state-controlled news agency reported.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)