Retail sales in Hong Kong rose 3.4% year-on-year in January 2026, easing from a 5.1% increase in December and marking the slowest pace of growth since August. The moderation was largely driven by sharper declines in several categories, including food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco (-10.8% vs -0.4% in December), supermarkets (-5.7% vs 0.6%), fuels (-25.0% vs -21.9%), and department stores (-9.9% vs -4.8%).
Turnover in other consumer goods also grew more slowly (2.4% vs 5.3%). Sales of consumer durable goods remained strong but showed some cooling, with growth easing to 34.3% from 39.6%.
By contrast, sales momentum picked up in some discretionary segments. Growth accelerated for clothing, footwear and allied products (5.3% vs -8.4%), as well as for jewellery, watches and clocks, and other valuable gifts (10.8% vs 1.2%).
On a month-on-month basis, retail sales climbed 6.5% in January, following a 3.8% increase in the previous period.
