China's October retail sales up 22 percent

China's retail sales remained robust in October, a positive sign for Chinese leaders who want to boost consumer spending to insulate the economy from a global slowdown.

Retail spending rose 22 percent in October from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday. That was down from September's 23.2 percent growth but still one of the strongest months on record.

Stronger consumer spending is one goal of a $586 billion stimulus package unveiled Sunday to boost China's economic growth and lessen the impact of weaker sales by the country's export industries_a mainstay of China's boom.

Consumer spending has stayed strong despite an overall downturn that saw economic growth fall to 9 percent in the latest quarter from last year's 11.9 percent.

Beijing has tried in recent years to reduce China's reliance on exports and investment to drive growth by encouraging consumers to spend more. But despite rapid growth, consumer spending is still relatively small as a share of the economy.

Total retail spending was just over 1 trillion yuan ($146 billion) in October, the statistics bureau said.

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