Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that there were 83% of the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments recording a year-on-year decline in receipts in July, a 4 percentage point growth from June. The corresponding shares of Japanese & Korean Restaurants (74%), Chinese Restaurants (90%) and Western Restaurants (95%) increased by 9 percentage points, 8 percentage points and 6 percentage points respectively. Meanwhile, 12% of the interviewed establishments reported a year-on-year rise in receipts, the same level as in June.

There were 84% of the interviewed retailers registering a year-on-year sales decrease in July, a rise of 4 percentage points over the preceding month. The interviewed retailers of Leather Goods, Adults’ Clothing and Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles reported a year-on-year sales decline in July; the corresponding proportion of Motor Vehicle Retailers (78%) surged by 33 percentage points, while the share of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers fell by 6 percentage points to 94%. On the other hand, 12% of the interviewed retailers recorded a year-on-year sales rise in July, a decrease of 4 percentage points from June.

The business of both industries was expected to improve slightly in August. There were 22% of the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments anticipating a year-on-year rise in receipts or steady performance, up by 3 percentage points from July; the share of Chinese Restaurants (14%) rose by 3 percentage points. As regards retail trade, 23% of the retailers predicted that their sales would increase year-on-year or remain stable in August, a growth of 1 percentage point from July.

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, which comprises 188 restaurants & similar establishments and 135 retailers that accounted for 50% and 65% of the respective industry’s receipts in 2018. The Survey results were not extrapolated and only reflect the assessment of the business performance and expectations of the sample restaurants and retailers.