China's 18-Measure County Consumption Push Eases Chain Store Expansion Rules

Nine Chinese ministries issued an 18-measure policy Aug. 18 to stimulate county-level consumption, easing cross-regional licensing for chain stores and expanding new energy vehicle subsidies to rural markets.

The document, jointly published by the Ministry of Commerce, National Development and Reform Commission, and seven other agencies, states that lower-tier markets should serve as a strategic pillar for expanding domestic demand and building a strong domestic market.

Core measures include a "multiple locations, one license" framework for chain enterprises in qualifying counties, deepening the "Thousand Markets, Ten Thousand Stores" renovation program, and expanding rural rollout of new energy vehicles, green smart products, and green building materials. The policy also extends "15-minute convenience living circles" to county areas, advances rural passenger-freight-postal logistics integration, and supports fiscal interest subsidies, bond financing, and entrepreneurship guarantee loans for qualifying businesses.

The policy targets China's county-level consumer market, which has lagged urban spending as the broader recovery sputters. The Ministry of Commerce will break down tasks annually and strengthen supervision across the nine participating agencies.

The "Opinions on Further Stimulating Lower-Tier Market Vitality and Activating County-Level Consumption" marks the latest central government push to build out county-level commercial systems, following a series of similar initiatives in recent years. The document draws on the experience of the "Thousand Villages Demonstration and Ten Thousand Villages Renovation" project, calling for category-specific measures to optimize consumption channels, enrich brand supply, and enhance service capabilities.

Chain Deregulation and Commercial Renewal

On renovating existing commercial infrastructure, the policy deepens the "Thousand Markets, Ten Thousand Stores" upgrade program, supporting the construction and renovation of township commercial centers, rural agricultural trade markets, and specialty township fairs. Traditional department stores and aging shopping centers will be upgraded, while brand chain stores, discount retailers, and fresh food e-commerce outlets are guided to optimize their layouts. County-level commercial network planning will be integrated with territorial spatial planning, with dynamic adjustments based on commercial vacancy rates.

The deregulatory signal for chain enterprises is a defining feature. In qualifying county-level areas, chain enterprises and individual commercial businesses may adopt a "multiple locations, one license" framework, with simplified approval procedures for opening supermarkets and convenience stores. The document explicitly prohibits explicit or implicit barriers to cross-regional operations by chain enterprises and encourages state-owned property owners to extend lease terms for commercial projects.

NEV Rural Push and Factor Support

On the supply side, the policy promotes "same quality, shared access" for identical products across urban and rural markets, encouraging enterprises to launch new products simultaneously in counties where conditions permit. The rural rollout of new energy vehicles, green smart products, and green building materials will be expanded, along with broader coverage of rural charging infrastructure. This directly benefits NEV manufacturers such as Geely Auto (00175.HK) and BYD, which Morgan Stanley expects to see accelerated sales growth in the second half of 2026.

Distribution efficiency improvements include deepening cooperation between postal and express delivery services, advancing integrated rural passenger-freight-postal logistics, and accelerating the connection of county-level commercial logistics with express delivery networks. The "Digital Commerce Revitalizing Agriculture" initiative will be implemented in depth, with the establishment of "village livestream academies." Platform enterprises will be guided to reduce commission fees and technical service charges for newly onboarded county-level merchants.

On fiscal, financial, and land policies, the document deploys support in tandem. Eligible personal consumption loans and service industry operating entity loans will receive fiscal interest subsidies. Wholesale, retail, and service consumption enterprises may issue bonds and list for financing. Commercial distribution enterprises opening new chain stores in county areas may apply for entrepreneurship guarantee loans with interest subsidies. On land, county-level logistics, warehousing, and cold chain land may reference industrial land market price levels when determining transfer reserve prices, and county-level industrial land may accommodate supporting administrative and living service facilities not exceeding 15 percent of the total floor area ratio.

The policy also incorporates employment and entrepreneurship measures, supporting corporate headquarters or platform enterprises in establishing business outlets in counties, intensifying work-relief programs, and promoting the "Common Prosperity Workshop" experience. The nine agencies span commerce, development and reform, finance, human resources, natural resources, agriculture, culture and tourism, market regulation, and financial regulation — demonstrating the cross-agency coordination intended to clear bottlenecks in approval, land use, financing, and distribution.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.