5-year domestic-trade plan expected soon

A five-year plan for the development of domestic trade, which is expected to boost consumption as the next key driver of the Chinese economy, will be released soon, according to Fang Aiqing, assistant minister of commerce.

The plan, which will include guidelines for wholesale, retail, lodging, catering and resident-service sectors, will help expand the annual domestic residential consumption to 32 trillion yuan ($5.04 trillion) in 2015, 80 percent larger than it is currently.

The authorities will release a series of policies to boost consumption, including subsidies for replacement of used vehicles and building materials, as well as a reduction of the consumption tax, the Shanghai Securities Journal reported.

Consumption has contributed to 4.5 percentage points of the economic growth in the first half. But analyst said the momentum of consumption growth is not sustainable, as restrictions on the property market remain.

In general, the consumption growth is expected to grow 15 percent this year.