HK retail sales jump 7% in January due to improved consumer sentiment

Hong Kong’s retail sales recorded a 7% year-on-year increase in January this year as consumer sentiment and retail businesses saw improvement. This is the second consecutive month that the local retail sales saw growth.

According to the latest figures released by the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD), the value of total retail sales in January 2023, provisionally estimated at HK$36.2 billion, increased by 7% compared with the same month in 2022. The revised estimate of the value of total retail sales in December 2022 increased by 1.2% compared with a year earlier.

Online sales accounted for 8.2% of the total retail sales value in January 2023. The value of online retail sales in that month, provisionally estimated at $3.0 billion, decreased by 4.2% compared with the same month in 2022. The revised estimate of online retail sales in December 2022 increased by 12.8% compared with a year earlier.

After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the provisional estimate of the volume of total retail sales in January 2023 increased by 5.1% compared with a year earlier. The revised estimate of the volume of total retail sales in December 2022 decreased by 0.6% compared with a year earlier.

It is worth noting that retail sales in January tend to show greater volatility in the first two months of a year due to the timing of the Lunar New Year. Local consumer spending normally attains a seasonal high before the Festival. As the Lunar New Year fell on 22 January this year but on 1 February last year, the year-on-year comparison of the figures for January 2023 with those for January 2022 might have been affected by this factor to a certain extent, according to the release. 

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Analysed by broad type of retail outlet in descending order of the provisional estimate of the value of sales and comparing January 2023 with January 2022, the value of sales of other consumer goods not elsewhere classified increased by 6.0%. This was followed by sales of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts (+23.1% in value); electrical goods and other consumer durable goods not elsewhere classified (+13.4%); wearing apparel (+14.4%); commodities in department stores (+3.9%); medicines and cosmetics (+15.3%); motor vehicles and parts (+1.3%); footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories (+16.0%); Chinese drugs and herbs (+38.5%); books, newspapers, stationery and gifts (+20.3%); and optical shops (+13.8%).

A government spokesman said that the value of total retail sales rose further in January over a year earlier as consumer sentiment improved as well as the early arrival of the Lunar New Year this year. Business of many types of retail outlet saw improvement, with some recording double-digit increases. 

Looking ahead, the spokesman pointed out that the continued return of economic activities to normalcy and further rebound in the number of visitor arrivals will benefit the retail sector. Improved labour market conditions will also provide support.

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