The value of total retail sales in May, provisionally estimated at $29.6 billion, rose 10.5% compared with the same month in 2020, the Census & Statistics Department announced today.

Of the total retail sales value in May, online sales accounted for 7.4%. Provisionally estimated at $2.2 billion, the value of online retail sales increased 53.1% year-on-year.

After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the provisional estimate of the volume of total retail sales for the month increased 7.8% compared with a year earlier.

The value of sales of other consumer goods, not elsewhere classified increased 27.4%.

This was followed by sales of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts (+54.8% in value); wearing apparel (+12.6%); food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco (+0.5%); medicines and cosmetics (+19.3%); motor vehicles and parts (+28.3%); fuels (+22.4%); furniture and fixtures (+2.4%); footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories (+9.4%); books, newspapers, stationery and gifts (+11.2%); Chinese drugs and herbs (+18.8%); and optical shops (+13.4%).

The value of sales of commodities in supermarkets decreased 3.5% for the period, followed by sales of commodities in department stores (-6.2% in value) and electrical goods and other consumer durable goods, not elsewhere classified (-0.5%).

The Government said that while retail sales volume increased further in May on a year-on-year basis, it was still far below the pre-pandemic level as inbound tourism remained frozen amid travel restrictions worldwide.

Looking ahead, the Government noted that while the imminent launch of the Consumption Voucher Scheme should help stimulate local consumer sentiment, the near-term operating environment of the retail sector will remain challenging in the lack of visitor spending.

It is thus essential for the community to strive towards more widespread vaccination so as to create favourable conditions for a full-fledged revival of retail business, it added.