商贸零售行业定期报告：社零+2.8%，开局良好

Investment Rating - The industry investment rating is maintained as "Positive" [2] Core Insights - The total retail sales for January-February 2026 reached 86,079 billion yuan, with a nominal year-on-year increase of 2.8%, exceeding market expectations; retail sales excluding automobiles increased by 3.7% year-on-year [4][12] - In January-February, the retail sales of catering amounted to 10,264 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 4.8%, while commodity retail sales were 75,815 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 2.5% [4][13] - Essential goods showed strong performance due to holiday effects and increased return migration, with year-on-year growth in food and oil (+10.2%), beverages (+6.0%), tobacco and alcohol (+19.1%), and daily necessities (+6.6%) [4][20] - For discretionary goods, textiles and clothing, as well as communication equipment, led the growth, with cosmetics (+4.5%), gold and silver jewelry (+13.0%), textiles and clothing (+10.4%), and communication equipment (+17.8%) showing significant increases [4][22] - The real estate chain remained relatively flat, while the automotive chain continued to be weak, with retail sales of passenger cars declining by 18.9% year-on-year [4][25] - Online retail sales grew by 9.2% in January-February, totaling 32,546 billion yuan, with physical online retail sales reaching 20,812 billion yuan, up 10.3% year-on-year [4][35] Summary by Sections Overall Retail Data - The total retail sales for January-February 2026 were 86,079 billion yuan, with a nominal year-on-year increase of 2.8%, and a 3.7% increase excluding automobiles [4][12] - Urban and rural retail sales increased by 2.7% and 3.2% year-on-year, respectively [4][13] Limited Above Data - The retail sales of limited above units reached 32,218 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 2.7% [4][20] - Retail sales of limited above commodities and catering increased by 2.5% and 4.7% year-on-year, respectively [4][20] Classification Data - Essential consumption categories showed significant growth: food and oil (+10.2%), beverages (+6.0%), tobacco and alcohol (+19.1%), daily necessities (+6.6%) [4][22] - Discretionary consumption categories included textiles and clothing (+10.4%), cosmetics (+4.5%), gold and silver jewelry (+13.0%), and communication equipment (+17.8%) [4][22] Online Retail Data - Online retail sales totaled 32,546 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 9.2% [4][35] - Physical online retail sales reached 20,812 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 10.3% [4][35] - Online service retail sales amounted to 11,734 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 7.3% [4][35]