Updated at 6.31pm: Hong Kong music sales plunged to HK$856 million last year triggered by a big fall in sales of international CDs, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).
The industry body revealed that total turnover generated from music audio and music video sales in the SAR dropped 8 per cent from HK$932 million in 2000.
IFPI (Hong Kong) chief executive Ricky Fung Tim-chee said audio CDs, which contributed for a major proportion, had shown a contraction of 10.26 per cent, without disclosing the exact amount in dollar terms.
''Sales of international albums plummeted 18.9 per cent last year,'' he said, adding that this category accounted for 30.1 per cent of total turnover.
Cantonese CD sales accounted for 49.35 per cent of total turnover and Mandarin albums for 8.8 per cent, while classics and Japanese music accounted for 7.25 per and 4.4 per cent respectively.
The sinking record sales have revealed a frail industry in Hong Kong, hit hard by last year's economic downturn.
