Weekly News Wrap: As travel resumes, China’s luxury shoppers stay local; Challenging outlook for Hong Kong’s retail sector

And Apple begins hiring retail store staff in India.

From Reuters:

An end to China's travel curbs this month is expected to revive demand in the global luxury retail market, which has been starved of mainland visitors for three years, but many consumers now see more reasons to do their high-end shopping locally.

Share prices of global luxury brands jumped last week after Beijing announced it would loosen travel restrictions from 8 January, effectively allowing Chinese tourists to once again flock to global shopping hubs from Paris to Tokyo.

However, analysts and luxury brands warn they are unlikely to see an immediate return to pre-pandemic levels of Chinese travellers with airlines yet to fully resume operations and local prices falling. Just as importantly, big luxury brands are now investing more in the shopping experience in China.

One Shanghai shopper, surnamed Mao, said that she had visited boutiques around the world for years, but now believes she gets the best service in China.

READ MORE: Luxury market’s last quarter growth hinges on China’s reopening

From Reuters:

Hong Kong's retail sales fell in November, snapping two straight months of growth, and tightened financial conditions would continue to weigh on consumption, the government said on Wednesday.

November retail sales fell 4.2% from a year earlier in value terms to stand at $3.77b (HK$29.5b). That compared with HK$31.9b in October, when retail sales grew a revised 4% from a year earlier.

Strict COVID-19 restrictions have weighed on Hong Kong's economy since early 2020, grinding tourism to a halt and battering sales at bars, restaurants and shops.

Apart from the wearing of masks, which remains compulsory, Hong Kong cancelled all its stringent COVID-19 rules last Thursday, meaning arrivals no longer need to do mandatory PCR tests, while the city's vaccine pass has also been scrapped.

From Bloomberg:

Apple has begun hiring retail store workers in India and has plans to fill other roles as the technology company prepares to open stores in the country, according to a report by the Financial Times.

The company’s careers page lists several different opportunities for workers in India, including business expert, “genius,” operations expert and technical specialist.

Apple’s website currently shows over a hundred results for job positions in India. The retail positions, posted on Saturday, were listed for various locations within the country, including Mumbai and New Delhi.

The Cupertino, California-based tech giant has long planned to set up physical retail locations in India, one of the world’s fastest-growing smartphone markets.