Hong Kong’s leader has conceded that the city has a problem with its sluggish retail scene amid a trend of locals spending their holidays across the border, but warned against using it as the sole yardstick in assessing the economy.
Hong Kong’s retail sales dropped for a 14th consecutive month in April, falling by 2.3 per cent, year on year, to HK$28.9 billion (US$3.7 billion). For the first four months, retail sales were down by 5.6 per cent over the same period last year, as witnessed in a string of chain closures.
“We do have a problem with retail, and that is to do with the changing of the market,” Lee told the Post in an exclusive interview, referring to the trend of Hongkongers spending their weekends and holidays in neighbouring mainland Chinese cities.
“It is a negative change of market phenomena. People will have to adapt to it, and we have to refocus on what we should do.”
![“The cake is still getting bigger. But, of course, [businesses will have] to work harder to ensure that this slice continues to grow,” city leader John Lee has said. Photo: Dickson Lee](https://img.i-scmp.com/cdn-cgi/image/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto/sites/default/files/d8/images/canvas/2025/06/07/6fc81921-fab3-42ac-9d9d-e6c0f9fe398c_1126e908.jpg "“The cake is still getting bigger. But, of course, [businesses will have] to work harder to ensure that this slice continues to grow,” city leader John Lee has said. Photo: Dickson Lee")
He also argued that while shops had closed during the transitional period, new stores were also opening.
