HK retail sales value down 0.1% to HK$39bn in May

    Hong Kong's value of total retail sales in May, provisionally estimated at HK$39 billion, edged down by 0.1% compared with the same month in 2014. The revised estimate of the value of total retail sales in April dropped 2.1% compared with a year earlier. For the first five months of 2015, the value of total retail sales decreased by 1.8% compared with the same period in 2014, the Census and Statistics Department said.
  After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the volume of total retail sales in May grew 4.6% over a year earlier. The revised estimate of the volume of total retail sales in April increased by 2.5% over a year earlier. For the first five months of 2015, total retail sales rose 1.3% in volume compared with the same period in 2014.
  A government spokesman indicated that retail sales showed some relative improvement in May. Nevertheless, the drag from the slowdown in tourist spending remained notable, as the sales of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts continued to register a double-digit year-on-year decline. The near-term outlook for retail sales will still depend much on the performance of inbound tourism. Yet, the stable job and income conditions should render some support to local consumer sentiment.