Advertisement

Mainland tourists seek out US goods in Hong Kong amid trade war, but few buy: retailers

Retail businesses in the city report slow sales during the Easter holiday as Hongkongers opt to travel

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
9
Harbour City shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui during Easter. Many Hongkongers have opted to leave the city during the long weekend. Photo: Dickson Lee

Hong Kong retailers have received a surge in inquiries from mainland Chinese tourists about the prices of high-end US products amid an ongoing trade war, but shop staff have said few end up buying and business has dipped during the Easter holiday.

Retail sales have been slow as Hongkongers leave the city in droves during the long weekend, with 1,329,556 departure trips by residents and only 234,090 visitor arrivals recorded on Thursday and Good Friday.

Departures by locals were 31.4 per cent higher than the pre-pandemic figure in 2018 and up 8.4 per cent against Easter last year. Arrival numbers were 20.4 per cent lower than in 2018 and 15.2 per cent higher than last year.

Most of the arrivals were mainlanders, with many who spoke to the Post on Saturday sharing that they just wanted to unwind and window shop.

Some shops selling American products in the city noticed a surge in the number of mainlanders checking prices after Beijing raised the tariff on goods from the country to 125 per cent in retaliation for Washington’s 145 per cent duty.

But Hong Kong has decided to maintain its free port status.

Advertisement