China: 42% Jump in Jewelry Sales

(IDEX Online News) – Retail sales of gold and silver jewelry in China increased 42.1 percent in 2011, as Chinese consumers had more discretionary money to spend on luxury items.

The figure, published in a recent report by the National Bureau of Statistics of China, hugely outpaced gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 9.2 percent for the year.

The growth in GDP slowed from the previous year's 10.4 percent.

Total retail sales of consumer goods reached $2.9 trillion, growing 17.1 percent over the previous year, or a real growth of 11.6 percent deducting inflation.

Consumer prices in 2011 increased 5.4 percent, lead by an 11.8 percent leap in the prices for food. The cost of housing increased 5.3 percent compared to 2010.