Hongkong'S Retail Sales In January Dropped By 21.4% Over The Same Period Last Year.

The new crown virus epidemic exacerbated the already weak retail environment in Hongkong. Retail sales in Hongkong declined by 21.4% in January compared with the same period last year, and shopping activities for tourists and local residents were greatly reduced.

Data released by the Hongkong government on Monday showed that retail sales in Hongkong fell for the twelfth consecutive month. Retail sales in January were HK $37 billion 800 million, down 21.4% from the same period last year. The decline is still expanding compared with 19.4% in December last year.

A spokesman for the government said: "the retail business environment has become more serious recently because the new crown virus has caused the tourism industry to stagnate and cause serious disruption to consumption activities."

In January, sales of jewellery, clocks and high-end gifts which were heavily dependent on mainland tourists decreased by 41.6% compared with the same period last year, compared with 36.6% in December. Sales of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics fell by 32.3%, while department store sales fell by 27%.

In January this year, the number of inbound tourists in Hongkong decreased by 52.7% compared with the same period last year, compared with 51.5% in December and 55.9% in November. It has hit the biggest drop since May 2003 (SARS epidemic).

According to the data of Hongkong Tourism Development Bureau (HKTB), the number of inbound passengers in Hongkong dropped to 3 million 200 thousand in January. Among them, the number of passengers in mainland China dropped by 54.2% to 2 million 500 thousand.

HKTB also said that the average daily arrivals in January were about 100 thousand passengers, less than half of the same period in 2019. In February, the figure continued to decline to less than 3000.

Last Wednesday, the Hongkong government also announced the highest budget deficit ever since, promising cash subsidies to residents and reducing business tax.

Hong Kong Retail Management Association said that it had entered "super cold winter", and the situation was endangering the survival. Some shops had already started to strike, hoping to persuade landlord to reduce rent before Hongkong returned to normal in Hongkong. Previously, in order to ease the pressure on tenants, the Real Estate Company and shopping center owners such as Hongkong Henderson, Sun Hung Kai and new world development have announced rent relief programs.