On August 1, the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government released preliminary retail statistics for June: the provisional estimate of total retail sales value was HKD 29.9 billion, a decline of 9.7% compared to the same month last year.
Compared to the same period in 2023, the provisional estimate of total retail sales value for the first half of the year decreased by 6.6%.
Online sales accounted for 7.8% of the total retail sales value in June. The provisional estimate for the value of online retail sales in June was HKD 2.3 billion, an increase of 5.2% compared to the same month last year. The revised estimate for online retail sales value in May showed an increase of 20.2% compared to the same month last year. For the first six months of this year, the provisional estimate of the cumulative value of online retail sales decreased by 0.3% year-on-year.
After adjusting for price changes over the period, the provisional estimate of the total retail sales volume in June decreased by 11.2% compared to the same month last year. The revised estimate for the total retail sales volume in May showed a decrease of 12.7% compared to the same month last year. Compared to the same period in 2023, the provisional estimate of the total retail sales volume for the first half of the year decreased by 8.2%.
By major retail categories, except for the sales values of medicines and cosmetics (+3.4%) and books, newspapers, stationery, and gifts (+0.1%), which showed growth, the provisional estimates of sales values in several categories for June declined as follows:
- Jewelry, watches, and valuable gifts: down 23.1%
- Other consumer goods not classified elsewhere: down 1.2%
- Supermarket goods: down 0.5%
- Clothing: down 13.2%
- Food, alcoholic drinks, and tobacco: down 5.7%
- Electrical goods and other consumer durables not classified elsewhere: down 4.7%
- Department store goods: down 18.6%
- Motor vehicles and parts: down 25.1%
- Fuels: down 12.3%
- Furniture and fixtures: down 9.8%
- Footwear, related products, and other clothing accessories: down 9.1%
- Chinese medicines: down 2.8%
- Optical shops: down 13.9%
Compared to the first quarter of 2024, the seasonally adjusted provisional estimate of the total retail sales value for the second quarter decreased by 5.8%, while the seasonally adjusted provisional estimate of the total retail sales volume decreased by 6.8%.
A government spokesperson stated that although the total retail sales value in June continued to decline year-on-year due to changes in consumption patterns of tourists and residents and the high exchange rate of the Hong Kong dollar, the decline has further narrowed. After seasonal adjustment, the month-on-month comparison also showed a slight increase of 2.3%, reflecting signs of stabilization in retail activities.
Looking ahead, the spokesperson noted that the retail industry will still face challenges in the short term. However, various support measures from the central government and the strong promotion of event economy and support for local retail development by the Special Administrative Region Government should help the industry. Furthermore, continuous economic growth and increased employment income of residents should also support the retail industry.
The spokesperson also mentioned that the Special Administrative Region Government will continue to work hard to help the local retail industry develop, one direction being to support small and medium-sized enterprises, including those in the retail sector, to upgrade, transform, and explore markets. Last month, the Special Administrative Region Government launched the E-commerce Easy under the “BUD Special Fund” to support enterprises in expanding their business in the Mainland market through e-commerce. The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is also holding the first “Hong Kong Goods Festival” on Mainland e-commerce platforms in August to enhance the visibility of Hong Kong brands and products in the Mainland and assist Hong Kong enterprises in expanding their e-commerce business. Additionally, HKTDC has organized several large-scale exhibitions open to the public during the summer, such as the “Hong Kong Book Fair” held in July and the upcoming “Food Expo,” which are expected to attract tourists and local consumers to shop, boosting the retail industry.
According to data from the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the number of inbound tourists in June was 3.1326 million, an increase of 14% compared to the same period last year, of which the number of Mainland tourists was 2.3373 million, an increase of 8.5% year-on-year. In the first half of the year, the number of inbound tourists was 21.151 million, an increase of 64.2% compared to the same period last year, of which the number of Mainland tourists was 16.141 million, an increase of 59.6% year-on-year.
| Sources: Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, official press release
| Image Credit: Free image website Pexels
| Editor: LeZhi
