HONG KONG, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Retail sales in Hong Kong suffered another steep decline in September as months of chaos and unrest continued to batter the local economy, official data showed Friday.
Hong Kong's total retail sales value last month slumped by 18.3 percent year-on-year to 29.9 billion Hong Kong dollars (about 3.815 billion U.S. dollars), according to a provisional estimation from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.
September's decline followed a 22.9-percent year-on-year drop in retail sales in August. For the third quarter alone, retail sales volume fell by 19.5 percent year-on-year, almost on par with the record decline in the third quarter of 1998, according to government data.
Sales of jewelry, watches and clocks and valuable gifts suffered the hardest blow that plunged 40.8 percent year-on-year in September, while that of commodities in department stores and wearing apparel went down 25.6 percent and 26.3 percent from a year ago, respectively.
An HKSAR government spokesman said the further decline in retail sales was a result of continued local social unrest taking a heavy toll on inbound tourism and consumption-related activities, who expected the sector's performance likely to stay weak in the near term.
The months-long unrest has already delivered a major blow to Hong Kong's economy, which contracted 2.9 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, marking the first decline in almost 10 years and a technical recession.
