Last year, more than 83 million Chinese people traveled abroad, spending US$102 billion

Last year, more than 83 million Chinese people traveled abroad, spending US$102 billion. Who is the consumer with the strongest purchasing power in the global travel retail industry today? On the 13th, Foreign Affairs…

Last year, more than 83 million Chinese people traveled abroad, spending US$102 billion. Who is the consumer with the strongest purchasing power in the global travel retail industry today? On the 13th, the "2013 China Duty Free Report" released by the Luxury Goods Research Center and the Wealth Quality Research Institute of the University of International Business and Economics showed that due to the impact of multiple factors such as service, price difference, and safety, Chinese tourists have become the largest consumer group in the global travel retail field, with their overseas consumption reaching US$102 billion in 2012. However, with the development of global economic integration, Chinese consumers will eventually go abroad to purchase luxury goods that cannot be purchased at home. Current situation: Chinese make the largest contribution to global travel retail. The report shows that in recent years, the number of Chinese outbound travelers has increased year by year. Since exceeding 50 million for the first time in 2010, it has maintained an annual growth rate of about 20%. In 2012, the number of Chinese outbound travelers has reached 83 million. At the same time, the overseas consumption of Chinese tourists has also surged, jumping from US$54 billion in 2010 to US$102 billion in 2012, nearly doubling. "This can be reflected in the number of passengers received by domestic airports." Zhou Ting, director of the Fortune Quality Research Institute, said in an interview with reporters that last year, 21 airports across the country received a total of about 500 million passengers. Zhou Ting analyzed that the gradual increase in the number of outbound tourists has actually led Chinese tourists to become the largest consumer group in the global travel retail field, "even enough to support half of the European local luxury goods market." For example, she said that at London's Heathrow Airport, Chinese tourists accounted for about 1% of all tourists, but they created 25% of duty-free revenue; at Burberry's outlet store in the Hackney area of ​​London, on non-weekend days, about three-quarters of its customers were Chinese tourists. Not only in Europe, but also in South Korea, Chinese tourists spent an average of US$116 at Incheon Airport in 2012, beating Japanese tourists who spent an average of US$70 per person. In addition, according to data from the Singapore Tourism Board, the per capita spending of Chinese tourists in Singapore in 2011 was approximately US$1,081, which was more than double that in 2002 (approximately US$377). At Dubai International Airport, Chinese tourists spent approximately US$1,370 to US$2,500 on wine, and usually purchased more than three Hermès scarves. Features: Over 40% of consumers prefer to visit Hong Kong and Macao. When purchasing luxury goods, which countries or regions are most favored by Chinese consumers? What products do you most often buy abroad? "But what is different from previous years is that this year, Hong Kong and Macao are becoming the most popular places for consumers to buy luxury goods." Zhou Ting told reporters that in 2012, the focus of Chinese consumers' luxury shopping decisions was overseas. In addition to Hong Kong and Macao (26%), Europe was the focus of China's overseas tourism consumption, accounting for 23%, followed by the United States (10%). In 2013, Hong Kong and Macao became the favorite place for Chinese consumers to buy luxury goods, with a proportion as high as 44%. Compared with last year, the number of consumers choosing to go to Europe dropped by 8%; the number of consumers buying luxury brands in the United States increased by 5%. In addition, Chinese consumers’ overseas luxury goods consumption mainly focuses on leather goods, watches and jewelry. However, due to different asset status, ordinary consumers are more inclined to buy low-level luxury goods such as perfumes, cosmetics, leather goods and clothing; while top-level luxury goods such as jewelry and watches are most favored by wealthy consumers. "Interestingly, due to the price difference between domestic and foreign markets, ordinary consumers love leather goods when shopping overseas, especially big-name bags. Rich consumers prefer limited edition or customized leather goods," Zhou Ting said. Reason: The price difference between domestic and foreign prices has become the main reason for overseas consumption. Why has overseas consumption increased significantly? The report believes that because the price difference between domestic and overseas consumption still exists, this is the main reason that stimulates most ordinary consumers to choose overseas consumption. "The reasons for the price difference are, on the one hand, the pricing mechanism of luxury brand companies, and on the other hand, luxury goods import duties, consumption taxes, and various taxes and fees in the circulation link." Zhou Ting analyzed. "In addition, the continued appreciation of the RMB exchange rate has also given Chinese tourists more financial strength to spend overseas." This statement was recognized by citizen Liu Wei. Liu Wei works in a financial company in Chongqing. In 2005, she went to Europe on a business trip and bought a GUCCI handbag for US$1,500. According to the exchange rate of RMB to US dollar at that time of 1:8.27, she had to pay RMB 12,405; but now she only needs to pay RMB 9,183 for a bag with the same price. In addition, the report also shows that some domestic consumer goods are unsafe and some goods are in short supply. Chinese people are more willing to trust the quality of overseas goods and enjoy the shopping experience. Trends Tourism and cultural experience consumption are becoming more and more popular. Regarding future trends, the report mentioned that tourism consumption will become a major feature of overseas consumption in the future; in addition, going to the origin of luxury goods to experience the culture and connotation of their brands, and "experience tours" will become increasingly popular among Chinese consumers. The report shows that Chinese consumers' overseas luxury goods consumption can be roughly divided into three stages: the first stage, from the early days of reform and opening up to the mid-1990s, more than 80% of luxury goods consumption was realized overseas. In the second stage, from the mid-1990s to the present, luxury brands have entered China one after another, and have even penetrated into second- and third-tier domestic cities. "Now it is easy for Chinese consumers to buy their favorite luxury goods at their doorsteps." Zhou Ting analyzed that at present, overseas consumption of Chinese luxury goods is basically stable at around 40%. The report predicts that with the highly developed logistics and information flow and the development of global economic integration, overseas consumption will soon enter the third stage: eventually, Chinese people will mainly buy luxury goods abroad that cannot be bought in domestic stores, especially customized, limited edition and niche designer brands.