Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated an improvement in business of restaurants & similar establishments in April 2017, with 52% of the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments reporting a year-on-year growth in receipts, up by 5 percentage points from March. The corresponding proportions of Western Restaurants (50%) and Chinese Restaurants (58%) increased by 15 and 10 percentage points respectively from March. On the other hand, the proportion of establishments recording a year-on-year decline in receipts went down by 12 percentage points to 23%, with the corresponding proportions of Western Restaurants, Chinese Restaurants and Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops reducing by 30, 16 and 14 percentage points respectively.
Retail trade business was less satisfactory. The proportion of interviewed retailers that reported a year-on-year increase in sales in April 2017 went down by 2 percentage points from March to 49%. All of the interviewed Leather Goods Retailers, 68% of the Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers, 60% of the Adults' Clothing Retailers and 56% of the Supermarkets showed a year-on-year rise in sales in April. However, the corresponding proportion of Motor Vehicle Retailers dropped by 45 percentage points from March to 22%. On the other hand, 38% of the interviewed retailers recorded a year-on-year decrease in sales, up by 11 percentage points from March. The corresponding proportions of Motor Vehicle Retailers and Adults' Clothing Retailers increased by 56 and 15 percentage points respectively.
The interviewed restaurants & similar establishments anticipated steady business performance in May, with 51% expecting their receipts to remain stable year-on-year, up by 11 percentage points from April. Among the various types of establishments, 27% of the Chinese Restaurants and 19% of the Japanese & Korean Restaurants expected a year-on-year rise in receipts in May, up by 7 and 6 percentage points respectively from April. Meanwhile, more than half of the Chinese Restaurants and Other Restaurants & Similar Establishments expected their receipts to stay stable year-on-year. On the other hand, 30% of the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments predicted a year-on-year decline in receipts, down by 9 percentage points from April, with the corresponding proportions of Chinese Restaurants, Western Restaurants and Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops decreasing by 18, 10 and 10 percentage points respectively.
Retailers expected business to slacken off in May. The proportion of interviewed retailers that anticipated a year-on-year increase in sales in May went down by 2 percentage points from April to 23%. Among the various types of retailers, 80% of the Leather Goods Retailers, 33% of the Department Stores and 30% of the Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles Retailers expected a year-on-year growth in sales. On the other hand, 38% of the interviewed retailers anticipated a year-on-year decline in sales, up by 5 percentage points from April, with the corresponding proportions of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers (32%) rising by 11 percentage points.
The sample of the Business Climate Survey on Restaurants & Similar Establishments and Retail Trade was selected based on the value of receipts of the establishments, comprising 167 restaurants & similar establishments (accounting for 53% of the industry’s receipts) and 135 retailers (accounting for 70% of the industry’s receipts). The Survey results were not extrapolated and only reflect the assessment of the business performance and expectations of the sample restaurants and retailers.