China's accommodation and catering retail sales up 23.6% in Q1

China's accommodation and catering retail sales in the first quarter this year were up 23.6% year-on-year to reach RMB 368.73 billion (about US$52.68 billion), boosted by the commodity price rise, according to statistics unveiled by the Ministry of Commerce.

The statistics showed that the sales volume, accounted for 14.4% of the country's total retail sales volume, was 6.2% higher compared with the same period last year.

In the period, the foreign-funded accommodation and catering companies declined 1.8% to 168, as compared with the corresponding period last year, while the contractual foreign funds increased 82.4% to US$700 million.

China's catering retail sales were predicted to soar 19% yea-on-year to exceed RMB 1.47 trillion this year.