Hong Kong protests cast a shadow on city’s festive decorations as businesses cut down on size and scale

Shun Sze International Development, which specialises in designing and installing lighting displays, says business this year has been its worst ever

Sales of Christmas trees have been affected, with consumers buying smaller trees, says Anglo Chinese Florist

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The anti-government protests have seen businesses cut spending on Christmas lighting across the city. Photo: Felix Wong

Published: 10:00am, 25 Dec 2019Updated: 2:31pm, 25 Dec 2019

It’s Christmas season, and as usual the city is bathed in a neon glow, with building facades and shopping districts on both sides of Victoria Harbour decked out in festive lighting.

Sadly, six months of anti-government protests have stripped Hong Kong of its usual festive mood and affected businesses that depend on them.

One such company is Shun Sze International Development, which specialises in designing and installing lighting displays outside shopping malls and buildings that dot the city’s skyline.

“I’ve been designing festive lights for more than 30 years, and this has been the worst year [for my business],” said Terence Wong Kim-shan, founder and president of Shun Sze.

People walk past festive Christmas decorations near Harbour City shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui. Hong Kong’s retail and toursim sectors have been hit hard by the lingering anti-government protests. Photo: Bloomberg

Hong Kong has slipped into a technical recession as the city’s tourism and retail sector has been battered by six months of ongoing social unrest, sparking fears of looming job cuts.

He said that large festive lighting decorations, such as those found outside Tsim Sha Tsui Centre and Wing On Plaza in Kowloon, had been commissioned at least half a year in advance, so those were unaffected. However, some smaller businesses had reduced their budgets as the social unrest showed no signs of abating, leading to a nearly 20 per cent decline in his business this year.