Consumption is the main driving force for China's economic growth, with the contribution rate of final consumption expenditure to economic growth reaching 82.5% in 2023. To enhance consumption capacity, improve consumption conditions, and innovate consumption scenarios, it is essential to fully unleash the potential of consumption. Relying on the in-depth application of technologies such as the internet, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence, new business models and formats like online shopping, mobile payments, and the integration of online and offline platforms have flourished, effectively meeting people's diverse, personalized, and high-quality demands, and playing a significant role in stimulating consumption potential and promoting consumption growth. At present, China's economic operation is generally stable, but there is still a lack of effective domestic demand, and the vitality of consumption needs further release. It is necessary to cultivate and expand various new business models and formats for consumption, strengthen efforts to promote the quality and upgrading of consumption, and continuously consolidate and enhance the economic recovery trend.

In recent years, new business models and formats represented by online shopping have been widely popularized, promoting rapid consumption growth. As of December 2023, the scale of Chinese netizens reached 1.092 billion people, with online shopping users exceeding 80%. In 2023, China's online retail sales for the whole year amounted to 154.2 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 11%. At the same time, the business model of online shopping has been continuously innovated and iterated, with the development momentum of new online retail models such as live streaming sales being rapid. The in-depth application of technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data has greatly enriched consumption content, with smart home and smart wearable consumption showing a high-speed growth trend. New scenarios such as instant retail and telemedicine are accelerating expansion, and according to estimates by the China International E-Commerce Center, the compound annual growth rate of the instant retail market size from 2023 to 2030 is expected to be 25%.

The popularization of internet technology and the rise of the platform economy have driven consumption scenarios from offline to online and consumption objects from physical to services, with continuous innovation in the content and form of service consumption. The "Internet + Service" consumption model has grown rapidly, with online entertainment, online fitness, and online tourism becoming new drivers of consumption growth. In 2023, the combined sales of online tourism, online entertainment, and online catering contributed 23.5% to the growth of online retail sales, driving an increase of 2.6 percentage points in online retail sales. Platform-based and sharing-based new consumption models have stimulated huge consumption potential, with new consumption models such as food delivery, ride-hailing, express delivery, and shared accommodation continuing to develop rapidly, helping to release consumption potential.

At present, the consumption concept of Chinese residents has shifted towards quality consumption and experience consumption, with consumption tending to be more personalized and high-quality. The transformation of consumption concepts has driven changes in consumption behavior, thereby stimulating new consumption potential. Against the background of comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development, the concept of green consumption has become increasingly popular, with green, low-carbon, and environmentally friendly lifestyles and habits becoming important demands of consumers, driving the continuous expansion of green consumption scale. The consumption of new energy vehicles, energy-saving and water-saving products, and second-hand goods has gradually become a trend, with the sales of new energy vehicles in China reaching 9.495 million in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 37.9%. With the continuous improvement of residents' health literacy, new business models and formats for health consumption have emerged, with the demand for health food, health equipment, sports equipment, medical beauty, and elderly care services growing rapidly. In the first half of 2024, China's per capita medical and health care expenditure was 1,271 yuan, accounting for 9.3% of per capita consumption expenditure.

The cultivation and expansion of new business models and formats have provided a broad space for the quality and upgrading of consumption, but their development also faces some problems. Efforts should be made to remove obstacles that constrain their development, promote the continuous and rapid development of new business models and formats for consumption, fully stimulate potential consumption, and inject strong momentum into high-quality economic development.

First, strengthen the construction of information networks and commercial circulation infrastructure. Further increase the construction of new infrastructure such as 5G networks, data centers, and the Internet of Things, and build a highly reliable, low-latency, and wide-coverage communication network that prioritizes coverage of core business districts, important transportation hubs, and main application scenarios. Establish and improve a digital commodity circulation system, accelerate the layout of a digital consumption network, and strengthen the construction of cold chain logistics facilities. Promote the development and integration of technologies such as big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and blockchain, enrich the application scenarios of 5G technology, and deepen the research and application of artificial intelligence products. Build a tiered structure of international consumption center cities, regional consumption centers, and small and medium-sized consumption cities, construct new consumption network nodes for urban-rural integration, actively develop smart blocks and smart business districts, and provide a basic support for the release of consumption potential.

Second, strengthen the construction of laws, regulations, systems, and standard systems, and establish an efficient and coordinated regulatory framework that is inclusive and prudent. In line with the characteristics of new business models and formats, and in accordance with the laws of development, accelerate the introduction of supporting rules and regulations in the fields of e-commerce and the sharing economy, and strengthen the construction of standard systems. Improve the cross-departmental collaborative supervision mechanism to achieve coordinated and complementary online and offline, and interactive connection between market supervision and industry supervision. Increase the crackdown on behaviors such as selling counterfeit and substandard goods, infringing on intellectual property rights, false advertising, price fraud, and privacy leaks, and strive to create a safe, trustworthy, and honest consumption environment to effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.

Third, comprehensively improve product quality and service levels to better meet consumer needs. In the process of cultivating and developing new business models and formats for consumption, it is necessary to pay more attention to improving product quality and service levels, improve the "Internet + Service" and e-commerce public service platforms, cultivate and create new formats with updated scenarios and better experiences under 5G conditions, form a diversified business model, enhance residents' willingness to consume, and expand consumption demand.

Fourth, enhance policy coordination to form a joint force to promote the development of new business models and formats. Accelerate the construction of a unified national market, study and formulate management methods for different industries and fields, and orderly connect with other relevant policies and regulations. Strengthen departmental collaboration and linkage between top and bottom levels, and accelerate the formulation of specific measures to lead new business models and formats to promote the rapid development of new types of consumption. Give full play to the role of industry associations and organizations as bridges and the data advantages of platform companies, increase the support of all parties for the development of new business models and formats for consumption, and create a favorable environment for promoting the expansion and upgrading of consumption.