BEIJING—China’s efforts to get its people spending got a boost over the three-day traditional tomb-sweeping holiday, with official and private data showing travel back up to pre-coronavirus levels by some metrics.
Swaths of China’s economy, in particular manufacturing and exports, long ago regained their pre-virus levels. But consumer spending, held back by travel restrictions and caution over the possibility of a resurgence, has been a persistent laggard for the past year.
But that, too, is starting to change as spring arrives and the country emerges from the most recent major wave of new cases in January. China’s domestic vaccination campaign is gaining steam after lagging behind those of other countries, helping dispel concerns for travelers.
China’s National Health Commission said it had administered more than 140 million vaccine doses as of Monday, enough for one in 10 Chinese citizens to have received a dose.
Over the recent three-day traditional tomb-sweeping holiday, which ended Monday, Chinese travelers made 102 million trips, more than double that of the same period a year earlier and equivalent to 94.5% of the trips made over the holiday in 2019, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism said Monday.
