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Hong Kong Retail Sales Plunge 14.6% as Covid Measures Bite

  • Value of retail sales contracts by most since July 2020
  • Government sees pressure ahead even with consumption vouchers
Closed stores on Hollywood Road in Hong Kong.

Closed stores on Hollywood Road in Hong Kong.

Photographer: Paul Yeung/Bloomberg
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Hong Kong’s retail sales contracted 14.6% in February from a year ago, the biggest decline since July 2020 as the government imposed tough restrictions to battle the city’s worst-ever Covid outbreak.

The fall in sales value -- the first for the city since January 2021 -- was even worse than the median estimate of a 7.7% decline expected by economists in a Bloomberg survey.