The changing Engel coefficient traces the leap in household consumption. At the start of reform and opening-up, the Engel coefficient for Chinese households exceeded 60 percent; in 2025 it stood at just 29.3 percent. The sharp drop in the share of spending on food has freed up vast room for consumption of services such as education, health, culture and tourism.

　　Global experience shows that once a country"s per capita GDP passes $10,000, its consumption structure typically shifts markedly, with services taking a rapidly rising share. China is now in that critical transition. Consumption is moving from "subsistence consumption," geared mainly to basic needs, toward "development-oriented consumption" that seeks quality, experience and self-fulfilment.

　　From the breakout popularity of the Jiangsu Football City League and the Village Super League to the growing craze for "traveling to catch a show"; from the rapid spread of service points for the elderly and young children to 30-minute delivery of just about anything becoming the norm — service consumption is no longer an optional garnish but a necessity of a better life. With a middle-income group of more than 400 million, China is entering a golden period for expanding the capacity and quality of its service sector.

　　It is also a key step toward raising total factor productivity and developing new quality productive forces.

　　Take a garment company. In R&D, AI-assisted design can shorten development cycles. In production, intelligent transformation and digital upgrading can sharply lift efficiency. In distribution, modern logistics can cut overall costs. In sales, market analytics can match products precisely to customer segments.