Hong Kong September retail sales rise 5.9% from a year earlier
A luxury store employee introduces handbag styles to a customer (not pictured) in Tsim Sha Tsui, a bustling shopping hotspot, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2023. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
HONG KONG :Hong Kong's retail sales by value in September rose 5.9 per cent from a year earlier, the fifth straight month of gains, government data showed on Friday.
Sales increased to HK$31.3 billion ($4.03 billion). In August, retail sales rose 3.9 per cent from the same month the year before.
In volume terms, September retail sales increased by 4.8 per cent from a year earlier, compared with a revised 3.4 per cent rise in August.
For the first nine months of 2025, the value of total retail sales declined by 1 per cent from the same period in 2024, and volume fell 2.3 per cent.
"Looking ahead, improving local consumer sentiment and sustained growth in inbound tourism should continue to render support to retail businesses," a government spokesperson said.
Visitor arrivals in September surged to 3.29 million, up 8 per cent from the same month a year earlier, according to Hong Kong Tourism Board data.
Mainland Chinese visitors accounted for 2.46 million of these arrivals, a 7 per cent increase year-on-year.
Sales of jewellery, watches, clocks and valuable gifts rose 9.1 per cent year-on-year in September after a revised 16.4 per cent increase in August.
Sales of clothing, footwear and allied products fell 10.2 per cent year-on-year in September following a revised 2.8 per cent rise in August.
($1 = 7.7675 Hong Kong dollars)
