The growth of Hong Kong retail sales in November slowed to a crawl according to Census and Statistics Department figures just released.
After a 6 per cent year-on-year increase in October, the value of sales in November rose just 1.4 per cent to an estimated HK$39.2 billion.
That is well below the 9.7 per cent year-to-date rise for the first 11 months of the year.
And after netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, Hong Kong retail sales in November rose by just 1.2 per cent year on year.
A spokesman for the C&SD said the “generally moderated growth in retail sales in recent months” reflected more cautious consumption sentiment in the face of various external uncertainties such as the US-Mainland trade tensions and volatilities in the global financial markets.
“Looking forward, while the favourable local job and income conditions and continued expansion in inbound tourism should still provide some support to the retail sector in the near term, consumer sentiment could be affected by weaker asset prices and the external uncertainties.”
