BEIJING, April 16 -- China's retail sales of consumer goods, a major indicator of the country's consumption strength, climbed 4.7 percent year on year in the first quarter of 2024, official data showed Tuesday.

The growth was compared to an increase of 5.5 percent registered during the January-February period, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Retail sales in the country's urban regions rose 4.6 percent year on year during the period, while that in rural areas expanded 5.2 percent.

Online retail sales jumped 12.4 percent year on year, with online retail sales of physical goods expanding 11.6 percent and accounting for 23.3 percent of the total retail sales of consumer goods.

China vowed to expand domestic demand and promote sound economic flows, while promoting steady growth in consumer spending this year.

Service consumption maintained solid expansion in the first quarter, contributing 55.7 percent to the economic growth, Sheng Laiyun, deputy director of the NBS, told a press conference.

The number of trips made during the Spring Festival holiday jumped 34.3 percent year on year, exceeding that of the same period in 2019. Tourism consumption during the holiday also surpassed the level seen in the same period in 2019, official data showed.