While July and August saw further falls in retail sales, albeit at a slower rate, we began to see signs of returning foot traffic in September.  

• The rate of decline in retail sales slowed in July and August during the third wave of COVID-19.
• The supermarket and grocery-related sectors and online platforms have all proved resilient during the pandemic.
• Rental declines also stabilised in both the prime street shop and shopping centre segments, registering a -2.0% decline and zero growth respectively over Q3/2020.
• Local spending is holding up and patronage of shopping malls and restaurants improved in September.
• According to our in-house trade and tenant mix analysis, overall vacancy in shopping centres has increased more than two-fold from 2% in September 2018 (pre-social unrest and COVID-19) to 7% in September 2020.
• Retailing in the New Territories and Kowloon is expected to recover quicker once same-day mainland visitors return.