Official Hong Kong retail sales figures for March show a 2.9 per cent year-on-year fall, blamed on shrinking in-bound tourist numbers.

According to data released by the Census and Statistics Department the fall follows a two per cent drop in January and February combined.

A government spokesman blamed the sluggish sales on a slowdown in inbound tourism.

“Most types of retail outlets recorded year-on-year declines in sales… Retail outlets selling certain consumer durable goods saw some notable increases in sales, mainly helped by the launch of certain smartphone models,” the spokesman said.

Weakened tourism is likely to continue to constrain growth, he said, “although the stable labour market conditions should still render support to local consumer sentiment”.

A more complete summary of the retail data has been published on Inside Retail Hong Kong, Inside Retail Asia’s new sister site.