Hong Kong protests continue to batter retail sector as sales plunge 23.6 per cent in November, the second biggest drop on record
- Consumer spending drops to HK$30 billion (US$3.84 billion) for the month after a record 24.4 per cent year-on-year slump in October, figures show
- Hardest-hit goods were luxury items such as jewellery, watches and valuable gifts, which recorded a staggering 43.5 per cent drop in sales value
Consumer spending dropped to HK$30 billion (US$3.84 billion) for the month after a record 24.4 per cent year-on-year slump in October, according to the Census and Statistics Department on Friday. For the first 11 months, the decline was 10.3 per cent against the same period last year.
Retail sales continued to fall sharply in November as protests turned extremely violent, causing severe disruptions to tourism and consumption-related activities and further dampening consumption sentiment, a government spokesman said.
“The near-term outlook for the retail trade continues to hinge on how local social incidents will evolve. As such, ending violence and restoring social order are essential to the recovery of the retail trade and indeed that of the whole economy,” he said.
The hardest-hit goods were luxury items such as jewellery, watches and valuable gifts, which recorded a staggering 43.5 per cent drop in sales value, followed by medicines and cosmetics with a 33.4 per cent fall. Sales of commodities in department stores also tumbled almost 33 per cent.