City’s retail sales down 10.4 pct for 2015

The city’s value of retail sales posted a 10.4 per cent drop last year, the first annual decline since 2000 with sales of watches, jewellery, department store goods and leather goods all suffering a hit, the latest data from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) retail sales survey shows.
Macau’s value of retail sales reached nearly MOP60.9 billion for the full year of 2015, with its retail sales volume down 7.9 per cent throughout the year, according to DSEC.
A double-digit decrease was evident in the retail sales value of watches, clocks and jewellery, department store goods, leather goods and footwear for the year. The segment of watches, clocks and jewellery, accounting for 22.2 per cent of all retail sales value measured by the service, experienced a drop of 25 per cent year-on-year to MOP13.53 billion last year – an annual decline that has lasted since 2014.
Department store goods, the segment that accounts for the second biggest retail sales value after watches and jewellery, also saw the retail sales value decline 13.7 per cent year-on-year to MOP8.93 billion in 2015, official data shows.
While a downward trend is seen in most retail items measured by the service for last year cosmetics and sanitary articles and communication equipment registered double-digit increases in retail sales value. The sales value of cosmetics and sanitary products reached MOP2.36 billion last year, while that of communication equipment was MOP1.68 billion.
The survey, which cites the business outlook from local retailers, said that nearly half of them anticipate that sales volume will decrease in the first quarter of this year vis-a-vis the final quarter of last year, while nearly 40 per cent expect the sales volume to remain stable.
In terms of retail prices, about 61.1 per cent of respondent retailers reported stable prices, 34.3 per cent noted a decrease and 4.6 per cent stated an increase although the survey did not specify the number of retailers questioned.
The value of retail sales for the fourth quarter of last year fell 10.5 per cent year-on-year to MOP15.59 billion. The sales volume also dropped 7.7 per cent in the quarter, with significant decreases in the sale of footwear (-24.5%), watches, clocks and jewellery (-16.0%), leather goods (-11.3%) and department store goods (-10.0%).