More and more Chinese are renting expensive consumer goods

Chinese domestic demand is gaining momentum thanks to new sales tactics, according to state media. More and more consumer therefore decide to rent expensive consumer items such as cameras or handbags, instead of buying them like the official daily newspaper People’s Daily reported.

This model opens up a “new perspective” for companies. New consumption formats offer “huge” potential.

Internet platforms, for example, allow consumers to rent a drone for one yuan (13 cents) per day, whereas it normally costs more than 5,000 yuan (660 euros). A “99 percent new” Louis Vuitton handbag can be rented for 35 yuan, an offer on a popular shopping app showed. There are similar offers in Europe; rented goods are often promoted as a more sustainable alternative to buying. However, it remains questionable whether fewer resources are actually used for this new type of consumption.

According to official Chinese statistics, retail sales fell short of expectations this year. They only grew by 3.5 percent from January to November. In 2023 they had risen more than twice as much to 7.2 percent.

Old devices can be exchanged for a bonus

To boost consumption, China introduced a trade-in system this year. It allows customers to get discounts when trading in old devices, bicycles and even cars.

According to official figures, sales under the program exceeded 1 trillion yuan this year.

This year, the world’s second largest economy after the USA is relying primarily on industry and exports, while demand from private households is also sluggish due to the severe real estate crisis. Economists are advising the government to gear its policies more towards consumers – also because US President-elect Donald Trump is threatening high tariffs on Chinese goods.

At a meeting this month, top officials from the ruling Communist Party said China should “vigorously” boost consumption next year and try to boost domestic demand “in all directions.”