BEIJING — Chinese people's life quality continued to improve in 2021, with the Engel coefficient of residents down to 29.8 percent from 30.2 in 2020, a communique released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Feb 28.

The Engel coefficient of urban residents was 28.6 percent, while that of rural residents was 32.7 percent, according to the bureau's communique on the country's economic and social development in 2021.

The annual per capita consumer spending was 24,100 yuan (about $3,812), an increase of 13.6 percent over the previous year, or an increase of 12.6 percent in real terms after deducting price factors, according to the communique.

The per capita spending of rural residents was 15,916 yuan, up 15.3 percent year-on-year in real terms, while that of urban residents was 30,307 yuan, up 11.1 percent from a year earlier after adjusting for inflation.