Abstract
This study examines differences among urban Chinese consumers and their consumption patterns in three major cities—Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin—utilising data from a nationally representative sample survey conducted in 2005. Differences were found in these consumers’ age distribution, education level, household composition, birth and death rates, income, expenditure patterns and consumer durable ownership rates. Beijing and Shanghai, the two most affluent cities in China, exhibited the highest consumer durable ownership rates and the highest cost of living. While previous research has frequently segmented China in terms of a rural versus urban dichotomy or by geographic region, this study suggests that the urban Chinese do not constitute a homogeneous market. Further, it is suggested that both geographic region and income, which varies between rural and urban settings, are sound bases for segmenting this important market.
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Acknowledgements
The senior author wishes to acknowledge his gratitude to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), and in particular Professor Xu Jin, for their help and cooperation during his visit to China in April 2006. Although both CASS and Macquarie University have supported this research, any views expressed are the authors’ own and do not reflect the views of either organisation.
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Yusuf, F., Brooks, G. Demographics and Consumption Patterns in Urban China. Popul Res Policy Rev 29, 5–17 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11113-009-9154-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11113-009-9154-5