Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that, after the catastrophic typhoon on 23 August, the proportion of interviewed restaurants & similar establishments reporting a year-on-year growth in receipts in August 2017 decreased by 8 percentage points from July to 32%, the lowest value recorded since November 2016. The corresponding proportions of Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops (18%) and Other Restaurants & Similar Establishments (32%) went down by 20 and 16 percentage points respectively, while the share of Japanese & Korean Restaurants (44%) increased by 19 percentage points. On the other hand, 46% of the establishments recorded a year-on-year decline in receipts, up by 11 percentage points from July. The corresponding proportions of Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops (53%) and Other Restaurants & Similar Establishments (50%) rose by 16 and 22 percentage points respectively.
As regards retail trade, 41% of the interviewed retailers reported a year-on-year sales increase in August 2017, down by 8 percentage points from July. The corresponding proportions of Motor Vehicle Retailers (33%), Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers (44%) and Leather Goods Retailers (80%) dropped by 33, 28 and 20 percentage points respectively, while the share of Supermarkets (67%) increased by 22 percentage points. On the other hand, 41% of the interviewed retailers registered a year-on-year sales decrease, up by 15 percentage points over July. The corresponding proportion of Motor Vehicle Retailers (67%) surged by 45 percentage points, and the shares of both Department Stores (44%) and Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers (33%) registered growth of more than 30 percentage points.
After the typhoon and the summer holidays, the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments were less confident about their business prospects in September, with only 21% anticipating a year-on-year rise in receipts, down by 11 percentage points from August. Among the various types of establishments, 13% of the Japanese & Korean Restaurants and 36% of the Chinese Restaurants predicted a year-on-year growth in receipts in September, down by 19 and 16 percentage points from August. Meanwhile, the proportion of establishments expecting a year-on-year decline in receipts went up by 9 percentage points to 48%. The corresponding proportions of Chinese Restaurants (41%) and Japanese & Korean Restaurants (56%) rose by 14 and 13 percentage points respectively.
Retailers expected no significant change in their business in September. The proportion of interviewed retailers predicting a year-on-year sales increase in September went up by 1 percentage point from August to 25%. Among the various types of retailers, Motor Vehicle Retailers were most optimistic about their business outlook, with 67% of them expecting a year-on-year sales rise in September, up notably from August; meanwhile, the corresponding shares of Leather Goods Retailers (60%) and Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers (22%) dropped by 20 and 17 percentage points. On the other hand, the proportion of interviewed retailers foreseeing a year-on-year sales decline in September held steady at 33% as in August. The corresponding proportion of Supermarkets fell by 33 percentage points to 11%, while the share of Leather Goods Retailers increased to 20%.
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.