Total Retail Sales of Cosmetics Falls 3.7% year-on-year in October

In October, cosmetics year-on-year growth rate remains the lowest in five years.

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On November 15, the National Bureau of Statistics announced the retail sales data of consumer goods in October 2022. In October, the total retail sales of consumer goods was 4.0271 trillion yuan (about $569 billion), down 0.5% year-on-year. In October, the total retail sales of consumer goods (except cars) were 365.75 billion yuan (about $51.7 billion), down 0.9% year-on-year.

In October, the total retail sales of cosmetics were 30.9 billion yuan (about $4.4 billion), down 3.7% year-on-year. Compared with the previous month, the total retail sales and growth rate both declined. The total cosmetics category from January to October was 308.4 billion yuan (about $43.6 billion), down 2.8% year-on-year.

In a vertical comparison, the year-on-year growth rate of cosmetics in October remained the lowest in five years, showing a sharp decline after reaching a peak of 18.3% in 2020. In fact, the total retail sales growth rate of cosmetics has maintained the lowest level in five years since this year and has been negative for three consecutive months.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, China's beauty cosmetics and toiletries category imported 35637.7 tons in October, down 24% compared to the same period last year. Imports amounted to 15.04 billion yuan (about $2.1 billion), up 1.42% year-on-year. The first 10 months of cumulative imports of 354257.3 tons, and the same period last year's decline of 10.9%. Imports amounted to 126.08 billion yuan (about $17.8 billion), a decline of 5.2%.

The Bureau of Statistics said that the current Chinese departments and regions efficiently coordinate the prevention and control of the epidemic and economic and social development, and strengthen the implementation of the initiatives to stabilize the economy. The national economy continues the recovery trend, with stable growth in industrial investment, employment and prices are generally stable. The accumulation of new momentum to enhance the protection of people's livelihood is strong and effective, and the general situation of economic and social stability.

In recent times, the major listed cosmetic companies have released their third-quarter financial reports, compared to the previous "substantial growth" and "record high" good results, both multinational companies and Chinese domestic listed companies, the overall growth rate of the third-quarter slowed down significantly. Especially International brands in the Chinese market, the impact of the epidemic is more obvious.

For example, although L'Oreal's revenue reached a record high in the past decade with a performance of over $27.9 billion (January-September), the growth rate of its North Asia region, where China is located, was significantly lower than other regions, with a growth of only 0.3% in the third quarter. The Chinese market of multinational companies such as Estee Lauder, Amore Pacific and Shiseido even saw a decline.

Some industry practitioners believe that the cold winter in the Chinese cosmetics market will continue.