Hong Kong’s June retail sales fell 9.7% from a year earlier, government data showed on Thursday, reflecting the changing consumption patterns of visitors and residents and the strong Hong Kong dollar.

Sales decreased to HK$29.9 billion ($3.83 billion), the fourth consecutive monthly decline, following an 11.5% slump in May, 14.7% drop in April and a 7% fall in March.

A government spokesman said that while the value of total retail sales fell, the rate of decline had narrowed.

“The retail sector will still face challenges in the near term,” the spokesman said.

Annie Tse Yau On-yee, chairwoman of the Hong Kong Retail Management Association, said the retail market was “facing a difficult moment now and the industry will remain weak, and (this will) last until the end of this year”.

In volume terms, retail sales in June fell 11.2% year-on-year versus a 12.9$ decline in May, 16.5% drop in April and an 8.7% fall in March.

For the first half of 2024, retail sales value fell 6.6% year-on-year and volume was down 8.2% from a year earlier period.

June visitor arrivals, opens new tab stood at 3.132 million, up 14% from a year-ago period, data from the Hong Kong Tourism Board showed. That compared with 3.398 million visitors in May.

The number of mainland Chinese visitors stood at 2.341 million in June, up 8.6% year-on-year.

Sales of jewellery, watches, clocks and valuable gifts in June dropped 23.1% year-on-year after a 21.4% drop in May.