HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s retail sales fell by 42% in March from a year earlier, as travel restrictions kept tourists away and most residents steered clear of shops and restaurants for fear of catching the coronavirus.
Sales dropped to HK$23.0 billion ($2.97 billion), government data showed on Tuesday, the fourteenth consecutive month of decline. February’s fall was 44%.
In volume terms, retail sales in March fell 43.8%, compared with a 46.7% drop in February.
(Reporting by Donny Kwok and Twinnie Siu; Editing by Louise Heavens)
