Sept Retail Sales Fall 18.3%

The value of total retail sales in September, provisionally estimated at $29.9 billion, fell 18.3% compared with the same month last year, the Census & Statistics Department announced today.

After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the volume of total retail sales decreased 20.4% year-on-year.

The value of sales of commodities in supermarkets decreased 2.6%.

This was followed by sales of food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco (-13.8% in value); electrical goods and other consumer durable goods, not elsewhere classified (-1.4%); jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts (-40.8%); commodities in department stores (-25.6%); medicines and cosmetics (-21.7%); wearing apparel (-26.3%); other consumer goods, not elsewhere classified (-15.3%); motor vehicles and parts (-16.1%); furniture and fixtures (-7.2%); books, newspapers, stationery and gifts (-9.6%); footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories (-16.6%); Chinese drugs and herbs (-18.2%); and optical shops (-15.8%).

The value of sales of fuels went up 5.9% for the period.

The Government said retail sales saw another month of significant year-on-year decline in September, as the local social incidents continued to take a heavy toll on inbound tourism and consumption-related activities.

For the third quarter as a whole, retail sales volume fell 19.5% year-on-year, almost on par with the record decline in the third quarter of 1998.

It added that the performance of retail sales is likely to stay weak in the near term, as protests involving violence continue to deter tourists and reduce local consumption and the subdued economic outlook also dampens consumer sentiment.

The Government will closely monitor the situation and its repercussions on the labour market and the economy.