China needs to relax restrictions on consumption of mid-and-high-end goods and services to boost domestic demand amid weak external demand, said Wang Yiming, a member of monetary policy committee of People’s Bank of China, at the China Development Forum 2023 on Saturday.

The world's largest and rapidly-growing middle and high income group is a strong contributor to China's consumption expansion, therefore regulators should lift restrictions on housing purchases, car buying in big cities and increase the supply of high-end education and medical services to meet their demand at multiple levels, he suggested.

Policymakers should make restoring and expanding consumption the priority to expand domestic demand, as it promotes economic recovery in the short term and provides for more sustainable growth over the medium and long term, he said. Reform of the household registration system and rural land system should be accelerated to open up options for migrant workers to settle in cities and stimulate potential consumer demand.