RAPAPORT... Hong Kong-based jeweler Chow Sang Sang saw a 3% rise in
sales in 2017, brought about by a stronger Chinese currency and an improvement
in consumer sentiment.
Sales were $2.12 billion (HKD 16.63 billion) for the year,
with jewelry-retail revenue increasing by the same percentage to $1.85 billion (HKD
14.52 billion). Revenue from other businesses, including property, also grew 3% to $269.8 million (HKD 2.12 billion). Profit jumped 18% to $111.7
million (HKD 876.4 million), the company said Tuesday.
Revenue from mainland China grew 9% to $1.02 billion (HKD
8.03 billion), as the Chinese yuan strengthened against the Hong Kong dollar,
boosting local spending power. Online commerce improved, accounting for
approximately 14% of total sales. In the local Chinese currency, revenue rose
11%, with same-store sales up 5%.
“In the second half of the year, both the property market
and stock market picked up momentum, bringing forth positive consumer
sentiment,” the company said.
Sales in Hong Kong and Macau slid 3%, due to the effects of
shop closures, the jeweler said. Same-store sales for the region slipped 2%,
a decline Chow Sang Sang attributed to the lower price of gold in the fourth
quarter. Revenue from gem-set jewelry increased in that quarter,
after a year-long downward trend.
Even as Hong Kong sales declined, the municipality became a
more attractive destination for tourists from mainland China, due to the
strengthening of the yuan. The number of tourists visiting Hong Kong went up by
3.2% in 2017, with those coming from mainland China climbing 3.9%, according to
data from the Hong Kong Tourism Board.
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