Coronavirus: China retail group Wangfujing secures duty-free licence as government seeks to revive spending
- Wangfujing Group, one of China’s largest retail companies, has won a duty-free licence from the Ministry of Finance
- Approval comes as China’s government seeks to address its twin goals of boosting consumer spending and opening the economy further to foreign companies
One of China’s largest retail groups specialising in department stores has been granted a duty-free licence, as the government tries to revive the coronavirus-hit retail sector and court overseas spending.
Wangfujing Group, which owns the landmark Beijing Department Store in the capital, said in an exchange filing on Wednesday it had received approval from the Ministry of Finance to sell duty-free goods.
The company operates at least 54 stores in 33 cities across China, giving it a much bigger footprint than competitors like China Duty Free Group and Sunrise Duty Free.
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Retail sales plunged by 16.2 per cent in the first four months of 2020 from a year earlier, while gross domestic product contracted by 6.8 per cent in the first quarter.