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Wynna Wong

Hong Kong’s retail sales in May rose 7.9 per cent year on year, extending the streak of growth to 13 months, with the sector benefiting from an increase in visitor numbers during mainland China’s Labour Day “golden week” holiday.
The value of retail sales for the month reached HK$33.8 billion (US$4.3 billion), up from HK$31.3 billion in May 2025, according to provisional figures released by the Census and Statistics Department on Thursday.
Retail sales for the first five months of the year rose by 10.6 per cent from the same period last year.
“The ongoing economic expansion and sustained growth in local labour earnings, together with a continued increase in inbound visitors, should benefit retail businesses,” a government spokesman said.
“The government will closely monitor the potential implications of evolving external uncertainties on the local consumption market.”
During the five-day Labour Day holiday from May 1 to 5, Hong Kong welcomed more than 1.01 million mainland visitors, representing a 10 per cent year-on-year increase that beat official forecasts.
However, industry leaders said at the time that spending patterns remained uneven across sectors.




Sales of jewellery, watches, clocks and valuable gifts continued to lead growth among major retail categories, surging by 25.8 per cent year on year in May.
Sales of “other consumer goods not elsewhere classified” rose by 14.8 per cent, while electrical goods and other consumer durables increased by 13 per cent.
Department stores and optical shops also recorded gains of 9.2 per cent and 10.3 per cent, respectively.
Among the weaker segments, sales of Chinese drugs and herbs fell by 9.5 per cent from a year earlier, while fuel sales dropped by 12.2 per cent.
Sales of food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco also edged down by 0.3 per cent.
Motor vehicles and parts, which had driven retail growth the previous month after buyers rushed to purchase electric cars before the expiry of a tax concession, grew at a more modest 1.7 per cent in May.
The Hong Kong Retail Management Association noted the significant slowdown in the category after sales soared by more than 80 per cent in March and 46 per cent in April. Chairwoman Annie Tse Yau On-yee said that although the concession expiry date was March 31, delayed deliveries helped boost figures in April.
Overall, multiple sectors recorded growth even as gains in some previously high-performing categories cooled, she said.
“The number of categories recording positive growth continued to outnumber those posting declines,” Tse said. “I think that is a relatively stable situation.”
She added that jewellery sales continued to benefit from elevated gold prices, which remained more than 20 per cent higher than a year earlier, as well as tourist spending during the Labour Day break.
“I have always stressed that golden week only benefits a limited number of retail categories driven by tourists,” she said.
She also cautioned that the category’s strong performance could soften if gold prices stabilised or declined.
Tse said she expected June to be a relatively weak month for retailers, citing persistent rainy weather, Hongkongers travelling across the border during the Tuen Ng Festival long weekend and the student examination season, which traditionally dampened local consumption.
Gary Ng Cheuk-yan, senior economist at Natixis Corporate and Investment Bank, said the retail sector’s recovery remained cyclical rather than structural, with growth still largely supported by visitor spending while local consumers remained cautious.
“The current level of retail sales remains well below the 2018 peak,” he said.
Ng said the resilience in jewellery sales reflected a global trend of luxury spending shifting towards such goods, with Hong Kong’s tax-free status continuing to make it an attractive shopping destination despite exchange rate fluctuations.
He said retail sales growth was likely to moderate in the second half of the year as the comparison base became higher.
Elevated interest rates, rising rents, weak wage growth and a “jobless economic recovery” would continue to weigh on household spending, although changes in Hong Kong’s tourism model could provide longer-term support despite slowing growth on the mainland, he added.


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News

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Economy

Value of retail sales for month reaches HK$33.8 billion, helped by increase in visitor numbers


Value of retail sales for month reaches HK$33.8 billion, helped by increase in visitor numbers.


Hong Kong retail sales grow 7.9% in May, extending winning streak to 13 months

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Value of retail sales for month reaches HK$33.8 billion, helped by increase in visitor numbers

Value of retail sales for month reaches HK$33.8 billion, helped by increase in visitor numbers