Retail sales flat in 2Q

2014/8/25

From：Macau Business Daily

Retail sales in Macau registered a small increase of 3 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, with clothing, department store goods and vehicle sales revenues sustaining the market following a 20 percent-plus drop in the sale of luxury goods.
According to the Statistics and Census bureau, retail sales topped MOP16.3 billion between April and June, a 3 percent increase compared to the same quarter in 2013 and 11 percent drop against the first quarter of the year that included the Chinese New Year, one of the top sales periods of the year.
The retail sales in the second quarter were also the highest of the last four years and more than double than that recorded in the second quarter of 2010. In that quarter, retail sales in Macau amounted to MOP 7 billion.
One of the highlights of the previous quarter was the huge drop in the sale of luxury goods in Macau. Sales of watches, clocks and jewellery decreased by 22 percent year-on-year, the only goods category that dropped in sales. The anti-graft campaign and the crackdowns on lavish spending emanating from Beijing are making clients more cautious about buying expensive items. Watches and jewellery account for more than a quarter of all retail sales here, the statistics office report revealed.
On the other hand, sales from goods in department stores, clothing and vehicles went up by 16 percent, 25 percent and 24 percent, respectively, year-on-year.

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