HK's total retail sales value up 3.4% in August

Hong Kong's value of total retail sales in August 2014, provisionally estimated at 40 billion HK dollars (about 5.15 billion U.S. dollars), increased by 3.4 percent over a year earlier, the Census and Statistics Department said Monday.

The revised estimate of the value of total retail sales in July 2014 decreased by 3.2 percent over the same period a year earlier. For the first eight months of 2014, total retail sales decreased by 1 percent in value over the same period a year earlier.

After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the volume of total retail sales in August 2014 increased by 2.8 percent over a year earlier.

The revised estimate of the volume of total retail sales in July 2014 decreased by 4.5 percent over the same period a year earlier.

For the first eight months of 2014, total retail sales decreased by 1.0 percent in volume over the same period a year earlier.

A government spokesman noted that retail sales showed a modest year-on-year rebound in August, as the decline in sales of jewelry, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts narrowed, amid fading base effects, while the sales of many other goods that are more closely related to local consumption increased moderately.

The spokesman added that looking ahead, the performance of retail sales will hopefully turn better in the near term as the high base effects continue to recede.

However, in view of the downside risks associated with the changing pattern in tourist spending and uncertainties in the external environment, we will stay alert and monitor the retail business situation, he added. (1 U.S. dollar = 7.76 HK dollars)