第三篇 Passage 3

Wal-Mart, the biggest chain store group in the US and worldwide, recently announced that it would open more branches in China. Having entered the Chinese market in 1996, Wal-Mart now has seven shopping malls and one main store in China, all of which have proved to be very successful. Meanwhile, more and more large foreign stores have opened their branch stores in inland China.

At first, only a few foreign diplomats, businessmen and tourists were regular customers of these stores, whereas now most of the faces one sees in the store are Chinese, and their patronage is increasing at an incredibly rapid rate. These foreign stores have won Chinese customers for being spacious, well lighted, relaxed, less crowded and noisy as well as having more imported products and showing deep respect for the customers.

Chinese consumers are becoming more and more fastidious. This is quite true. Chinese shoppers are these days paying greater attention to the date of production and quality guarantee period of the commodities they wish to buy, and if this information is not shown, they will often look elsewhere. More and more consumers carefully read the commodity food value breakdown before buying. Natural and green foods are preferred, whereas instant and frozen foods have lost their popularity. Consequently, fresh vegetables, fruits and dairy products, with low fat and cholesterol and no chemical additives, are now good sellers on the Chinese market. Imported health products are also a popular item on the Chinese market, despite being relatively expensive.

Living in Comfort

Although Beijing real estate prices are twice or threefold those of Shanghai and Guangzhou, the house purchasing trend in the capital is still on the rise. Citizens prefer to live in an environment, which is quiet, conformable and close to nature. At housing exhibitions in Beijing, living quarters with sizable green areas, convenient transportation and modern facilities are most in demand. Such properties include many advanced Western-style facilities and equipment, and houses are constructed in foreign styles to add to their appeal. The most desirable residences often include fitness centers, golf courses, indoor swimming pools and tennis courts.

Housing furnishings have also undergone a radical change. Environmentally friendly glue and paint are now preferred as regards decorating materials, and Sweden’s Ikea has brought to China diverse house furnishing and design ideas. Many first-time home purchasers go there in search of inspiration for styles of decoration, and it now transpires that wooden furniture is considered old fashioned, and that metal crafted furniture and fittings are the latest trend, although traditional styles have come back into favor.

Leisure Activities

Many young people are no longer in the habit of going home directly after work. Instead, they might arrange with friends to go to the gym or fitness club for some healthy exercise. From 6 pm to 9 pm on workdays and at the weekend, gyms are mostly full, despite membership fees having been raised. Owing to a shortage of sports fields and stadiums, people often have to make reservations two or three days in advance.

Chinese people no longer wonder about how to spend their recreation time. Pursuits such as bungji-jumping, rock climbing, bowling, archery and fitness exercises have become very common, and, for the more affluent, golf is becoming very popular. In some big sports stadiums, daytime football grounds turn into golf driving ranges at night, with professional coaches from Japan and the United States on hand to give the benefit of their expertise.

Weekend and holiday touring has become a new point of economic growth in China, and a definition of “holiday economy” is now included in Chinese dictionaries under new vocabulary. At the weekend, the suburbs are crowded with tourists hungry for fresh air and beautiful natural scenery, and hotels are always booked to capacity. There, away from the city, urban dwellers may find relaxation in mountain climbing, strolling through meadows and forests, river rafting, bathing springs, fruit picking, or even planting vegetables on the farm. The most recent tourist schemes include weekend’s abroad, and exploration tours.

Increasing Environmental Consciousness

When Beijing Television first began broadcasting air pollution statistics, Beijing people were a little bemused, whereas these days this issue is a popular topic. Many people plant flowers, grass and trees in their own courtyards, and garbage is appropriately sorted prior to disposal. Diesel trucks are only allowed on the road if they conform to required standards of tail gas emission, and gas, electricity and light diesel oil have largely replaced coal in terms of heating fuel.

Catching up with Global Trends

As film critics in Beverly Hills write their comments on the latest cinematic releases, movie fans in big Chinese cities are already sitting in the cinema, taking in their plot and enjoying the action. Although the price of tickets to the latest movies is relatively expensive, Chinese youngsters nevertheless go to see them as soon as they are issued. The scope of Chinese cinemas has expanded dramatically, with drive-in and joint venture cinemas in abundance. The joint venture cinema multi-hall rolling show system, whereby on entry the film-fan can see the new film of his choice within ten minutes, picking seats from a computer screen, has attracted many cinema-goers.

More and more Chinese consumers now demand name brands. The cosmetics, perfume, clothes and ornaments produced by foreign countries are quickly increasing their Chinese market share, and fashion news releases from Milan and Paris are of increasing interest to the Chinese people. Comfortable fabrics and simple styles are the most preferred, as the Chinese keep in touch with global trends while retaining their own characteristics.

Automobile purchase is another item of dramatic increase in China International Automobile Exhibition held in Beijing last year, and foreign participants were both surprised and impressed by the strong economic force of Chinese consumers. A large number of luxury famous brand cars were bought and driven away on the spot by the time the exhibition closed. Many representatives of car companies at the exhibition were left with large amounts of orders, and some purchasers requested customer-made design of automobile plants.

As China is now a member of the WTO, the Chinese people are becoming more and more internationalized and ready to merge with the global society.