Total receipts for the restaurants sector were $16.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2006, up 11.1% on the same period in 2005, Census & Statistics Department says.

Over the same period, restaurants' total purchases also rose 9%, to $5.4 billion. After discounting the effect of price changes, total restaurant receipts rose 9.4% in volume.

Analysed by type of restaurant, total receipts of non-Chinese restaurants rose 15.6% in value or 14.1% in volume. Total receipts of Chinese restaurants rose 12.6% in value or 11% in volume, while total receipts of bars grew 7.3% in value or 2% in volume.

Total receipts of fast-food shops grew 3.4% in value or 1.9% in volume. Miscellaneous eating and drinking places saw total receipts rise 1.3% in value, but fall 1.8% in volume.

On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, the volume of total restaurant receipts grew 5.7% in the last quarter as compared to the third quarter of 2006.

The whole of 2006 saw total receipts of $61.6 billion for the restaurant sector, up 9.5% in value, or 8.1% in volume, on 2005. Total restaurant purchases rose 7.2%, to $20.6 billion.