Hong Kong June retail sales notch 14th month of growth

HONG KONG, Aug. 4 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's provisional estimate of total retail sales value for June stood at 31.5 billion Hong Kong dollars (about 4.01 billion U.S. dollars), up 4.6 percent year on year, official data showed Tuesday.

In June, online sales came in at 3 billion Hong Kong dollars, rising 11.6 percent year on year and accounting for 9.4 percent of the total retail sales value, while the value of sales of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts recorded an increase of 20.1 percent year on year, data from the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government showed.

A spokesperson for the HKSAR government said that the value of total retail sales increased for the 14th consecutive month in June. Cumulatively, total retail sales value in the first half of the year was 9.6 percent higher than a year earlier.

Looking ahead, the spokesperson said that the continuing economic expansion, rising local incomes and a steady increase in inbound visitors are expected to provide support to the sector.