The value of retail sales in the third quarter of 2021 totaled MOP15.98 billion, up 78.1% year-on-year, but coming from a low base.
Discounting the effect of price changes, the sales volume index surged 86.5% year-on-year, according to data from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC).
For the first three quarters of 2021, the value of retail sales totaled MOP55.45 billion, double the amount in the corresponding period of last year. The figure represented a drop of only 1.8% from the same period in 2019 (MOP56.44 billion), implying that retail sales have gradually returned to pre-pandemic levels.
The increase in retail sales value was mainly driven by a surge in sales of Leather Goods, Communication Equipment and Watches, Clocks & Jewelry. In addition, the sales volume index for the first three quarters of 2021 soared 115.7% year-on-year and grew by 3.9% from 2019.
Meanwhile, the value of retail sales in Q3 dropped 22.9% from the revised figure (MOP20.71 billion) in the previous quarter. The sales values of Adults’ Clothing and Watches, Clocks & Jewelry fell 36.9% and 30.8% quarter-to-quarter respectively, which can be put down to the fall in the number of visitor arrivals resulting from the temporarily tightened entry and exit measures in August. The sales value of Supermarkets, however, grew 17.0%. LV
