Beijing (CNS)--The latest report released on 14th this month by the World Luxury Association says the luxury market in the Chinese mainland last year totaled 10.7 billion dollars in spending, accounting for a quarter of the global share. The report also said China is set to surpass Japan as the world's largest consumer of luxury goods by 2012.
World Luxury Association International Research Fellow Andy Kline said at a conference held in Beijing that, due to the economic crisis, sales of luxury goods in the United States and Europe had fallen markedly. Kline added that the tragic earthquake in Japan – the world's top consumer of luxury goods – had caused a tremendous blow to the country's economy. Meanwhile, China is seeing a significant increase in its luxury goods market.
Due to a separated luxury price between domestic and abroad markets caused by the highest luxury tax rate in the world, China has been witnessed a huge outside moving in luxury goods consumption- Chinese have spent four times of money abroad than in domestic luxury goods market.
However, much attention has been drawn to the "unhealthy" features of the Chinese luxury goods market. The World Luxury Association survey shows that Chinese luxury consumers tend to be young, with 73% of them under the age of 45, and 45% of them between 18 and 34.
"The youngest luxury goods consumers are Chinese," said Ouyang Kuan, chief representative of the World Luxury Association.
According to Ouyang, China's first and second generations are all self-made entrepreneurs who tend to spoil their children with a luxurious lifestyle.
"The excessive growth of the Chinese luxury goods market, together with a psychology of showing off good fortune, will lead to income disparity and a sense of insecurity among the country's different classes," Ouyang added. He also pointed it out that social responsibility from Chinese luxury goods consumers is needed.
The news was met with disapproval from Chinese Internet users, who called it "unstable" growth.
