|
BIZCHINA> Industries
![]() |
|
China has more than 1.3 billion bank cards
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-11-07 11:15 Chinese banks had issued more than 1.3 billion debit, credit and semi-credit cards by the end of September, roughly one for every person in China, according to China UnionPay. Bank card consumption as a percentage of China's total retail sales exceeded 18 percent in the first nine months as more Chinese opt for cards over cash, China UnionPay president Xu Luode told a forum on local finance. China had 183 banks issuing cards that could be used at 1.08 million points of sale of 650,000 specially endorsed outlets and 120,000 automatic teller machines. But the bank card market is dominated by large national banks as regional financial institutions controlled just nine percent of the market with 190 million bank cards issued over the first half of this year. A survey released by the Nielsen Company on Saturday showed the use of bank cards was spreading quickly and reshaping the shopping habits of the Chinese although cash remained the main form of payment. The report, based on 11,500 Chinese consumers in 18 cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Shenyang, revealed that urban card holders were gradually adopting Western consumption habits of using cards not only for shopping, but also cash withdrawals and even installment payments. China UnionPay, the country's only bank card network operator, planned to complete its national payment network next year by setting up branches in northwestern Xinjiang Uygur and Ningxia Hui autonomous regions as well as Gansu and Qinghai provinces that are less developed compared with the eastern coastal areas. (For more biz stories, please visit Industries)
|
大姚县| 台州市| 西藏| 永仁县| 遂川县| 邯郸县| 华池县| 常宁市| 开化县| 仁怀市| 进贤县| 楚雄市| 根河市| 义马市| 永和县| 自治县| 长治市| 宁阳县| 安顺市| 顺平县| 庆云县| 思茅市| 多伦县| 临泉县| 罗江县| 玉门市| 讷河市| 石城县| 余庆县| 清涧县| 博野县| 平陆县| 依兰县| 林口县| 安福县| 井冈山市| 望谟县| 宣武区| 正镶白旗| 靖宇县| 蒙城县|