Consumption rises during China's Golden Week

Inexpensive mass consumption was popular among China's holiday-makers during the seven-day National Day holiday, or a Golden Week, highlighting the country's frugality drive.

Sales revenues of national retail and catering sectors reached 870 billion yuan (142 billion U.S. dollars) from Oct.1 to Oct.7, rising 13.6 percent year on year, according to the report released Monday by the Ministry of Commerce (MOC). China's top commerce regulator.

Services targeting mass consumption were popular during the holiday, as many high-end restaurants offered discounts and inexpensive choices to echo the national austerity drive.

HaiDiLao Hot Pot, a national hot pot chain from southwest China's Sichuan Province, recorded a 45 percent year-on-year revenue increase during the past seven days, according to MOC's report.

Mass entertainment services such as self-driving and outskirts trips also attracted holiday-makers as many places rolled out inexpensive but healthy entertainment services such as hot spring spas.

China is in the middle of a campaign to boost ties between officials and the public and exorcise undesirable work styles such as formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance.