HKRMA members are now more optimistic of growth in Hong Kong retail sales than they were in recent months.

In a commentary accompanying its sharing of the official Hong Kong retail sales figures for April, which showed a fractional increase of 0.1 per cent, the retail lobby group said most of its member companies expect sales performance to “improve gradually”.

“Most of the member companies forecast positive growth for the sales performance in May, following the trend of the previous month.”

For the first half of 2017, the association forecasts the sales value to decrease by less than 1 per cent. Sales fell by 1 per cent in the first four months of this year combined.

The HKRMA also noted that the electronics and photography category – the worst performing retail sector in April with a decline of 18 per cent – has been deteriorating for 20 consecutive months.