China's catering industry exceeds 4 trln yuan in 2018

An AGV (automated guided vehicle) robot serves food to customers in a smart restaurant operated by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in east China's Shanghai, Oct. 15, 2018. China's food and beverage (F&B) industry posted a record high of 4.27 trillion yuan (636 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue in 2018, the China Cuisine Association said Sunday. The F&B industry revenue accounted for 11.2 percent of the total volume of retail sales last year, up 0.4 percentage points from 2017, said Jiang Junxian, president of the association. The F&B industry also contributed 20.9 percent to consumption growth in 2018, he said. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)