Government urged to consider impact of surging tourism on Hong Kong
Big rise in cosmetics and personal-care shops since rules for mainland tourists were relaxed
The number of shops selling cosmetics and personal-care products in Hong Kong has surged by 1,500 per cent in the 10 years mainlanders have been allowed to visit without joining tours, Legislative Council research shows.
A report on the study, which examined the impact of the individual visit scheme, also urges the government to consider the social impact of tourism.
Shops selling clothes, shoes and jewellery have all increased in number according to the survey, conducted by the Legco research office.
It points to "remarkable" changes in retail alongside an increase in visitors from 16.6 million to 54.3 million between 2002 to 2013, and says the government has focused only on infrastructure in assessing the city's capacity to absorb visitors.
"The continued growth of visitors may lead to negative social impacts, such as the conflicts between tourists and local residents over the use of public transport, enjoyment of attractions and recreational facilities," the report says.
The report cites a European Commission study which recommended that "social carrying capacity", which measures the level of tourism that will not be resented by the local population, should be taken into consideration when assessing a city's tourism capacity.
Cosmetics and personal-care shops increased from 90 to 1,440 from 2004 to last year. The second biggest growth was in clothing and footwear shops, which rose 42 per cent in number to 15,410 in the same period. Jewellery and watch shops grew 31 per cent to 3,850.