Hongkongers don't have much of a reputation as romantics; we consistently lag behind other cities in polls of sexual satisfaction, for instance. And now experts say cold recessionary winds may have brought a deeper chill to the bedroom.
The Richmond Fellowship of Hong Kong, a mental health charity, has received an increasing number of calls on its sex and relationship counselling hotline in the past eight months. More than 350 people have called since July, compared to its annual average of 300.
'By the end of the year, I'm sure that we'll have had more calls than last year,' says Brandon Low Yee-kit, a therapist at the service.
About 70 per cent of callers are men, most aged between 30 and 45. More than half complain of workplace pressure contributing to sexual woes.
'When people call, they tell us about their stress and the decline in their sexual activities. Most complain about being too tired to have sex or having sex less frequently,' says Low. 'Some say it is already too much of an effort to keep their jobs. We know anxiety is affecting them.'
At the privately run Hong Kong Sexual Health Centre, medical director Francois Fong Yeung says his clinic has also been receiving more inquiries and is now registering about 30 new cases each month compared with last year's monthly average of 10.
But more often than not, couples are either too shy to discuss their difficulties in the bedroom or don't know how to seek help.