Chinese consumer behaviors defy gloomy economic data

The business climate index for China's small and medium-sized enterprises, created by search engine Baidu and based on big data, has been improving for nearly a year amid government efforts to encourage entrepreneurship and innovation.

Consumption, which contributed 66.4 percent to the country's GDP last year, will remain a stronger force driving economic growth this year as effects of the country's supply-side reform policies start to pay off, the Ministry of Commerce said last week.

The Jefferies Group suggested adding new indicators for the Chinese economy that include express deliveries, ATM cash withdrawals, cinema box office revenue and flight distance of civil aviation, as they reflect growth conditions of rising engines of e-commerce, entertainment and tourism.

A more sophisticated approach is needed to observe economic changes such as recording power consumption, taxation and employment conditions for specific sectors, as well as business growth of professional third-party service providers such as law firms, accounting agencies and advertisement companies, said Pan.

"These are lively indicators to reflect the dynamic changes of China's economy, especially its economic restructuring, and it's time to update the instrument panel and display economic wellbeing," he said.