The beginning of CHINA'S Golden Week showed promise as visitor arrivals and sales increased, indicating some resiliency in consumer appetites.

According to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, state broadcaster CCTV stated that in the three days before the mid-autumn festival and National Day celebrations, tourism earnings surpassed 342.24 billion yuan (S$65.3 billion). That represents a 125% increase from the previous year. Trips by domestic tourists increased by 76% year over year to 395 million.

Citing railroad and airline statistics from the transport ministry, economists at Citigroup noted that the first three days of transportation data "shows decent demand so far."

Early data point to a significant increase in demand compared to 2022, when the nation was still mostly coping with some of the harshest pandemic controls in the world. It's also good news for the economy, which is undergoing a shaky and unsure recovery and probably needs further governmental support to boost consumer and corporate confidence.

Developers are watching to see if the eight-day weekend inspires a rebound for the market in what is traditionally a busy season for them, as a property crisis continues to weigh on the country's prospects. As a result of increased efforts to boost the housing sector, home sales moderated their slide in September.

On-demand, other areas are also displaying good trends. Local automakers have upped their delivery, and according to CCTV, sales at China's top restaurants and merchants jumped 8.3% in the first three days of the holiday compared to the same period in 2022. According to the broadcaster, orders for hotels and travel increased by more than 20% on major internet sites.