Even though he was an experienced swimmer and a medical check-up showed he had no condition that made exercise unsafe, 66-year-old Zhao Xin said he was stopped by staff at a local swimming pool from swimming with his grandson because of his age.
“The pool’s staff said it wasn’t able to mitigate the risks of exercise for older people, and that if it admitted swimmers over 65, local authorities would penalise it,” Zhao said.
“After I retired, I found that many times I want to spend money but am simply not allowed to,” said the former accountant from China’s eastern Zhejiang province.
It is these energetic retirees like Zhao who are propping up China’s persistently lacklustre consumption in recent years. From rail travel to purchases of digital devices and cars, spending by China’s older cohort has seen rapid growth recently, research shows.