Until the Chinese stock market crashed in June, Shanghai stockbroker Wang Yu had been planning to spend Rmb60,000 ($9,400) on a diamond engagement ring. When it came time to propose in October, he offered a Rmb4,000 gold ring instead.

Mr Wang’s tempered extravagance is one example of how Shanghai’s consumers may be cutting back in the face of economic uncertainty, with implications for the broader Chinese rebalancing story.

Despite a sharp slowdown in economic growth and the stock market crash, consumers in China’s commercial capital have proven resilient, according to FT Confidential Research, a research service from the Financial Times. A survey of consumers across the city found they spent an average Rmb4,959 a month over the past 12 months, compared with Rmb1,737 across urban areas nationwide. They increasingly favour a quality meal and foreign goods, while nearly 70 per cent said they travelled abroad during the past 12 months.