Hong Kong's online retail sales surge 24 pct in H1

HONG KONG, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's online retail sales soared by 24 percent in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2021, an official provisional estimate showed Tuesday.

Of the total retail sales in June, online sales accounted for 8.2 percent, according to the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.

The value of online retail sales in June was estimated at 2.3 billion Hong Kong dollars (about 293 million U.S. dollars), an increase of 0.5 percent year on year.

A spokesperson for the HKSAR government said that retail sales performance improved in the second quarter, with the value of retail sales rebounding sharply from the first quarter and reverting to mild year-on-year growth.

Yet the momentum softened in the latter part of the quarter alongside the increased number of local COVID-19 cases and sharp interest rate hikes by many major central banks, with retail sales registering a modest year-on-year decline in June, the spokesperson said.

It remains vital for the community to work in unison with the HKSAR government to keep the epidemic under control, the spokesperson said.