Figures released by the Census and Statistics Department on Wednesday showed that the value of total retail sales was estimated to be at HK$31.3 billion for the month, beating market expectations.
The latest figures marked the first annual increase since February last year, and also the fastest growth rate since December 2023.
A government spokesperson said that the industry’s performance improved last month.
“While the retail sector continues to adapt to the changes in consumption patterns, the government’s proactive efforts in promoting tourism and mega events, in tandem with the increase in employment earnings and sustained steady growth of the mainland economy, will help bolster consumption sentiment and support the consumption market,” the spokesperson said.
Sales of consumer goods that are not classified rose 8.9 percent year on year during the month, while that of medicine and cosmetics increased by 8.7 percent. Sales of department store commodities was also up by 6.3 percent.
But sales of furniture and fixtures continued to come under pressure, plunging 12 percent year on year during the month, while that of fuels dropped by 6.9 percent.
Netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, total retail sales in May rose 1.9 percent year on year, compared with the 3.3 percent decline seen in April.
Total retail sales dropped by 5.5 percent in the first five months of the year.
