Hong Kong retail sales up 0.7% in June

Online retail sales accounted for 8.5% of the total.

Hong Kong’s retail sales rose 0.7% year-on-year in June to a provisional $3.83b (HK$30.1b), according to the Census and Statistics Department.

However, after adjusting for inflation, the volume of retail sales fell by 0.3% compared to the same month last year.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales value increased by 0.3% in the second quarter compared to the first, whilst volume rose by 2.7%.

Online retail sales accounted for 8.5% of the total in June, reaching a provisional $318m (HK$2.5b), up 8.4% from a year earlier.

Amongst individual categories, sales of jewellery, watches, clocks, and valuable gifts grew by 6.8%.

Other sectors also posted increases, including miscellaneous consumer goods not elsewhere classified (+7.2%), medicines and cosmetics (+6.0%), department stores (+5.7%), supermarkets (+0.4%), and optical items (+1.0%).

In contrast, several categories recorded declines. Sales of furniture and fixtures dropped sharply by 16.3%, whilst electrical goods and other durable items fell by 9.3%, fuels by 8.7%, footwear and accessories by 7.2%, motor vehicles and parts by 6.0%, and apparel by 4.3%.

Books, newspapers, stationery, and gifts were down 4.7%, food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco also declined 1.5%, and Chinese medicine fell 2%.

The government said that retail sales have shown signs of stabilisation in recent months.

Looking ahead, it expects consumption to remain supported by rising employment income, a strong stock market, continued efforts to boost tourism and host major events, and business initiatives to offer more diverse shopping experiences.