What: The Chinese market is moving again with this year’s CNY.

Why it is important: If domestic travel is surging, international tourism is still to pick up, which is much awaited by all department stores in the world.

The resurgence of travel during China's Lunar New Year holiday indicates a potential uplift in consumer spending within the world's second-largest economy. Despite facing challenges such as low confidence and deflation, over 61 million rail trips were recorded in the first six days of the national holiday, a 61% increase from the previous year and the highest in five years. This revival in travel and consumer activity is a positive sign, though it's noted that surpassing the low activity levels of 2023, marked by Covid-19 outbreaks, was not a high benchmark.

China sees holiday travel surge