The Bosten Lake in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region's Bayingolin Mongol autonomous prefecture attracts tourists with its natural scenery. [Photo by Nian Lei/For China Daily]

While Chinese believe there'll be a steady increase in household incomes, savings and spending as restrictions ease, current purchases for such categories as apparel are 40 to 50 percent lower than the pre-COVID figures, Lin says.

Cities across the country, most notably Wuhan, Hubei province－the city hit hardest by the outbreak－are distributing coupons to boost retail spending. Shanghai issued 20 billion yuan worth of coupons during the May Day holiday.

Other trends the Mailman X report mentions are decreased outbound travel interest due to rising xenophobia and increased desire for domestic travel. Stories of Chinese people involved in racial incidents have gone viral, causing fear.

"This is affecting tourism because people refrain from traveling to countries in which these undesirable incidents have taken place," Lin says.

China has been the largest source of outbound travel for years and spent $277.3 billion on overseas trips in 2018. Concerns about xenophobia will have serious negative effects on such popular destinations as the United Kingdom and the United States, Lin says.