Ministry of Commerce:National Consumer Market Bottomed Out

Ministry of Commerce： National Consumer Market Bottomed Out

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that as the prevention and control efforts against the novel coronavirus disease （COVID-19） are gradually leading to a promising outcome， the national consumer market is bottoming out.

In late February， the average daily sales volume of the 1，000 retail enterprises monitored increased by 5.6 percent compared with that in midFebruary. Among them， demand in the automobile sector is obviously rebounding with a month-on-month growth rate of 14.8 percent. Communications equipment and home appliances grew by 11.7 percent and 11.1 percent respectively.

At present， the supply of daily necessities is sufficient and the price is quite stable. Pork prices are still at a high level. In order to ensure market supply， 55，000 tons of frozen pork from the central reserve have been released since late January.

In addition， local commercial departments are also taking active measures to expand sales channels.

Given the declining demand for many agricultural products， the Ministry of Commerce has helped to organize production and marketing service platforms which have succeeded in dealing with the problem. More than 13，000 tons of unsalable agricultural products have been sold through these platforms.

Pearl River Delta Ushers in New Competitive Advantages

As one of the most dynamic regions in China， the Pearl River Delta boasts of a solid manufacturing foundation which provides strong support for building the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area into a worldclass manufacturing hub. In the future， promoting more efficient and quality intelligent manufacturing will be the top priority here.

Over the past five years， industrial digitization has been constantly improving in Guangdong Province. More than 30，000 industrial enterprises have carried out technological upgrading and 500，000 micro， small， and medium-sized enterprises have begun using cloud servers. Behind this lies strong government support and the strong intelligent manufacturing capabilities of the Pearl River Delta itself.

The developed information technology industries have laid a solid foundation for the Pearl River Delta region to become a pioneer and make breakthroughs in artificial intelligence， big data， industrial Internet， and cloud computing. At the same time， during the transformation and upgrading of traditional manufacturing， huge demand was unleashed， which on the one hand supports the development of intelligent manufacturing， and on the other creates strong market dynamics for the development of the digital industry. As a result， providers of intelligent manufacturing solutions are attracted to the area.

Subsidies to Secure Spring Tillage

At present， spring farming is under way from south to north in China. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has formulated development measures for agricultural mechanization in order to ensure the quality of this years spring tillage.

According to the latest statistics， the total amount of agricultural machinery and tools put into spring agricultural production throughout the country is expected to exceed 20 million sets， which means spring tillage is guaranteed.

During the epidemic， the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has mainly adopted three measures to ensure spring tillage. First， online agricultural machines services are provided to support and guide farmers in various regions. Such services have helped to train 2 million machine operators and guided the maintenance of 6.2 million machines and tools. Meanwhile， selfdriving tractors， high-speed rice planters， plant protection drones， and other machines that employ fewer people and are more efficient are being promoted to provide farmers with alternative and efficient farming methods.

Second， the implementation of subsidies for the purchase of agricultural machinery has been accelerated. So far， the central government has provided RMB 140 million in subsidies， helping 26，000 farmers purchase nearly 40，000 sets of machines and tools.

Third， it collaborated with the Ministry of Transport in issuing an urgent notice to open green channels for the transportation of agricultural machinery.

Work and Production Resumed in a Targeted and Steady Way

A notice from the State Council requires that at present， unnecessary adminitrative approval procedures should be canceled and the resumption of work and production should be carried out in a targeted and steady way.

The notice aims to facilitate the resumption of work and production in China. Each province should take counties as the basic units and adopt differentiated epidemic prevention and control measures related to workplaces and production resumption. In low-risk areas， the commencement of construction and business operations should not be delayed for any reason.

While in medium- and highrisk areas， the provincial governments should first meet the requirements for virus prevention and control， and on the basis of this， formulate the conditions on which enterprises in the province could resume production. Unless necessary， approvals or certification are prohibited， and it is also strictly prohibited to collect deposits from enterprises. Green channels could be set up for the approval of enterprises in key industries to resume work and production.

In addition， online services are encouraged. All regions and departments are encouraged to sort out a number of government services closely related to the resumption of work and production and to peoples lives， and provide them online.