Young people China's main credit card users   

中国信用消费逐年升温 年轻人成“嗜卡”主力

招商银行行长马蔚华7日在博鳌亚洲论坛“提振消费：任重而道远”分论坛上表示，信用卡消费越来越成为中国消费者的一个重要习惯，尤其年轻人热衷信用卡消费，甚至透支、贷款消费。信用卡消费将成为推动中国消费的重要力量。

Boao (CNS) - Credit card spending has increasingly become a habit among Chinese consumers, especially young people, who are keen to make purchases with credit cards even with overdrafts and consumer loans, Ma Weihua, president of China Merchants Bank, said on Sunday at the Boao Forum for Asia.

According to the 2012 Bluebook of the Credit Card Industry in China, published by the China Banking Association, 55 million new credit cards were put into circulation in 2011, bringing the total number to 285 million. As of now, 330 million credit cards have been issued in China, with a year-on-year increase of nearly 20 percent, said Ma.

Chinese consumer attitudes are changing, and the young generation's consumer culture is different from their parents, Ma added.

China Merchants Bank's credit card business was expected to make earnings in eight years, but its profitability goal was achieved in four years. Interest contributed 40 percent of the earnings, and half of that came from overdrafts by young consumers.

However, China's overall consumption accounts for less than 1/3 of GDP, which is a low level in the world, Li Jiange, chairman of the China International Capital Corporation Limited, said at the forum. One of the reasons is that under the one-child family structure, many people's investments are limited, and they prefer saving money for retirement.

Lai Xiaomin, chairman of the China Huarong Asset Management Co., Ltd. also raised suggestions to promote consumption, including a long-term government mechanism to promote consumption and expand domestic demand.