FMCG sales in China continued to recover in August

According to Kantar Worldpanel, sales in China's fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market in the 12 weeks to 12th August 2022 increased by 5.0% on a year-on-year basis. The enduring summer heat wave as well as growing hygiene needs pushed the sales in beverages and home care by 12.2% and 6.5% respectively year on year. The personal care sector also reported a 2.7% growth during the last 12 weeks, marking a steady recovery. The food sector continued to perform resiliently, maintaining a 5.4% growth year on year.

Total modern trade continued to post a moderate sales gain of 2%, driven by the stronger performance of smaller supermarkets and CVS. Hypermarkets reported a decline of 2% as a result of reduced shopping trips. Amongst the major players of modern trade, Walmart led the growth and thanks to the eye-catching performance of Sam’s club. Yonghui maintained its position with a 5.6% value share of modern trade. Sun-Art still retained its leading position, with 7.9% value share, but 0.7 points lower than last year.

With the gradual recovery of delivery capacities in the last 2 months, the eCommerce channel managed to get back to its previous growth momentum, with 9% growth year on year, especially in key cities like Shanghai, Beijing and provincial capital cities. Among the major ecommerce platforms, JD maintained a strong growth momentum with a 0.9-percentage point increase in penetration, and its market share further improved by 0.7 percentage points.

Likewise, Douyin and Kuaishou kept taking on more shoppers and reported strong gains. The rapid growth of Douyin e-commerce also proves that livestreaming e-commerce is further unlocking consumer demand.