Huge potential for China's coffeehouse market: report

BEIJING - Though known as a nation of tea drinkers, China is expected to see an expanding market for coffeehouses as consumer interest and spending power grows, according to an industry report.

China's coffeehouse industry posted a 13-percent increase in revenue in 2016, which stood at 19 billion yuan ($3 billion), according to the report released by the Qianzhan Industry Research Institute.

The market will expand to 48 billion yuan by 2023, maintaining an annual growth rate of 11 to 15 percent, the report estimates.

There were 85,000 coffeehouses in China by the end of 2016, up from less than 16,000 in 2007, with foreign chain stores dominating the market.

China consumed 128,200 tons of coffee beans in 2016. With an average annual growth rate of over 22 percent since 2006, it is one of the world's largest coffee consumers.

However, per capita coffee consumption in China remains much lower than that in the United States, Europe, Japan and the Republic of Korea.

As a younger consumer group emerges with higher income and increased international interaction, the country's coffeehouse market has a bright outlook, the report said.

Cities that are third tier and below will see faster expansion of coffeehouses, compared with first- and second-tier cities, where most of the country's coffeehouses are located currently, according to the report.