Hong Kong retail sales jump nearly 12% in first 2 months of year

Hong Kong’s retail sales jumped by nearly 12 per cent in the first two months of 2026 against a year ago, with authorities pointing to growth in the local economy and a surge in tourists.Provisional figures released by the Census and Statistics Department on Wednesday showed retail sales reached HK$35 billion (US$4.47 billion) in February, driven by the Chinese New Year holiday and major events in the city. Sales were HK$37.3 billion in January.The department combined the retail sales figures for January and February for 11.8 per cent growth, year on year.In the Legislative Council, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui revealed that visitor arrivals rose by 17 per cent to 14.31 million in the first three months of the year.She said mainland Chinese visitors filled 90 per cent of hotel rooms in the city during the Chinese New Year holiday in February. In 2025, the average hotel occupancy was 87 per cent.The census department said that since Chinese New Year fell on February 17 this year but on January 29 in 2025, it was more appropriate to analyse the figures for the two months together when making a year-on-year comparison.