Hong Kong Retail Woes Continued in July With Fresh Outbreak

(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong’s retailers came under renewed pressure in July as a third wave of coronavirus infections led the government to introduce renewed social-distancing measures, further stifling tourism, shopping and eating out.

Retail sales by value fell 23.1% from a year ago to HK$26.5 billion ($3.4 billion), according to a government statement. The latest weakness follows a 24.7% contraction in June and before that, four straight months of declines greater than 30%.

The July reading is the 18th straight monthly decline for retail sales, the longest stretch since a 24-month period from 2015 to 2017. Hong Kong’s economy fell into recession last year amid anti-government protests and the economy has continued to contract in 2020 with the coronavirus and a halt to tourism.

The volume of retail sales dropped 23.9% from a year earlier.

Hong Kong saw a fresh wave of coronavirus infections spread throughout July, with the number of cases more than doubling to almost 3,300 by the end of the month, while the death toll almost quadrupled to 27.

In response, Chief Executive Carrie Lam introduced more restrictive measures in mid-July including closures of many public facilities, limits on restaurant capacity and hours as well as more limited public gatherings, further hurting the tourism and retail sectors.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.