03.01.201704:47:00UTC+00Hong Kong Retail Sales Fall At Faster Rate In November

Hong Kong's retail sales continued to decline in November, and at a faster pace than the previous month, preliminary figures from the Census and Statistics Department showed Tuesday.

The value of retail sales fell 5.5 percent year-over-year in November, which was worse than the 2.9 percent drop in October. Sales have been falling since March 2015.

Similarly, retail sales volume dipped at a faster rate of 5.6 percent annually in November, following a 2.7 percent decline in the prior month.

The value of sales of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts plunged by 14.4 percent. Sales of commodities in supermarkets dropped 1.1 percent, while sales of commodities in department stores grew by 1.7 percent.

"Looking ahead, the performance of retail sales will depend on whether inbound tourism would improve and whether the various external uncertainties would affect local consumer sentiment. The Government will continue to monitor the situation closely," a government spokesman said.