TOP NEWS IN 2017
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and she doesn’t have enough money to feed her family of four crammed into her small, government-subsidized Hong Kong apartment. Her husband can’t work, and the kids don’t understand why their mother keeps buying stale food.
Daily news: www.hongkongbusiness.hk
MEDIA & MARKETING
sales value of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts. RETAIL
AVIATION
Cathay Pacific denies it will fire another 200 staff this year Cathay Pacific Airways has denied a report in the South China Morning Post that there will be an additional 200 staff cuts later this year. “The number of redundancies resulting from the programme is around 600, as we announced to our people and the public yesterday. Rumours of other figures are incorrect,” their spokesperson said.
Retail sales value up 0.1% to $35.2b in April The value of total retail sales in April, provisionally estimated at $35.2 billion, was up 0.1% on the same month last year, said the Census & Statistics Department. After netting out the effect of price changes over the same period, the volume of total retail sales dropped 0.1% year-on-year. The sales value of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts increased 0.5%.
Retail sales up 3.1% to $35.7b in March The value of total retail sales in March, provisionally estimated at $35.7 billion, rose 3.1% on the same month last year, the Census & Statistics Department announced. The volume of total retail sales increased 2.7% year on year. Meanwhile, the 20 HONG KONG BUSINESS ANNUAL 2018
ECONOMY
Hong Kong is Asia Pacific’s most expensive location for expats Hong Kong is the Asia Pacific region’s most expensive location for expatriates and the second-most expensive on a global scale. This was one of the findings of the latest Cost of Living survey published by ECA International. It is also the world’s second costliest city.
Hong Kong Business Awards 2017 honours 26 outstanding firms To recognise the companies that excelled despite challenges in the local and global markets, Hong Kong Business held this year’s International Business Awards, Listed Companies Awards, and Business Ranking Awards. Almost 100 executives attended the awarding ceremony on 25 July where 26 firms were honoured.
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY
RETAIL
RETAIL
dropping When will it start stabilising? Passenger yields remain under pressure as back-end load factors remain soft leading to lower ticket prices according to Jefferies. In fact, management noted passenger yields continue to sequentially decline. Further, costs are also increasing, especially fuel.
4 new trends to watch out for in Hong Kong’s retail sector According to JLL, overall visitor arrivals and visitors from mainland China have decreased by 5.4% and 7.8% year-on-year respectively through January-November last year. Retail sales were also down 8.6% y-o-y.
Property sales drop 16.1% in May The Land Registry said the figures represent a 16.1% on April but up 24.3% compared to a year ago. The total consideration for sale and purchase agreements in May was $66.8 billion, down 24.1% on April but up 37.1% year-onyear. Amongst the sale and purchase agreements, 5,732 were for residential units.
ECONOMY
Hong Kong has the biggest wealth gap in Asia Mrs. Lau can’t help but glance nervously at the calendar. Her next paycheck isn’t for a week,
AVIATION
Cathay Pacific struggles as passenger yields continue
RETAIL
Over 3 in 5 retailers eye opening new stores in Hong Kong in 2018 A recent JLL survey found that 62% of international and local retailers have plans to open new stores in Hong Kong in 2018. It shows retailers are calling the bottom of the retail market and predicting an improvement since the retail rents in core shopping districts have dropped 41.2% from the market peak in 2014. JLL surveyed 50 international and local retailers in June and found that half of the respondents think Hong Kong’s retail market will recover next year. All retailers believe high-street rentals are still over-valued.