Hong Kong's retail sales by value increased 4.1% year over year to HK$44.9 billion in January, according to the city's Census and Statistics Department.
The growth slowed from the 5.8% year-over-year rise in retail sales value confirmed for December 2017.
The category of electrical goods and other consumer durable goods led growth for January with a 21.1% year-over-year increase in sales value. Across other product categories, sales value also rose 12.1% for medicines and cosmetics; 10.4% for jewelry, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts; and 3.3% for apparel.
Meanwhile, the sales value of supermarket commodities dropped 13.3% year over year. Sales value also fell 9.8% for footwear, allied products and other clothing accessories; 5.4% for food, alcoholic drinks and tobacco; and 4.6% for department store commodities.
The Census and Statistics Department noted that the Chinese New Year holiday shifting to mid-February this year from late January in 2017 may have impacted year-over-year comparisons of retail sales figures.
In volume terms, January retail sales were up 2.2% year over year, compared to the 4.3% growth recorded in December 2017.
