Shoppers in Hong Kong undaunted by protests

As the Hong Kong protests continue, the expectation has been that the democracy demonstrations in key business districts during the National Day Golden Week holiday period would be a disaster for tourism.

But, in fact, what has emerged has been a very mixed picture. Despite dire warnings by Chinese state media of multibillion dollar losses, most retailers have found the impact to have been confined largely to the areas affected by the protest.

The Hong Kong Tourist Association said that, during the Golden Week, there were 1,159,952 visitors, an increase of 4.8 per cent from last year. Mainland Chinese account for three-quarters of the city’s 54 million annual visitors, and the China National Tourism Administration in Beijing warned tour groups to stay away on safety grounds after the tear gas attacks on September 28th.

But many of those who had already booked went anyway. There were plenty of individual mainland tourists in evidence last week in Hong Kong, and they were merrily shopping away as they normally would.

Many tourists from Korea were also heading to Hong Kong, and on the flight back there were plenty of Chanel and Louis Vuitton shopping bags in evidence, just as there always are.

On the streets there was less activity but it didn't really affect economic activity. One shopkeeper at a newsagent's on Yee Wo Street in Causeway Bay told the South China Morning Post that their business had not been affected by the protest in the busy shopping district so far.

“We were the only shop open during the first days of Occupy Central, so our business is better than usual . . . selling water alone is enough to pay the rent,” the shopkeeper said.

Many of the busiest shopping districts for mainland tourists are far away from Central. Mong Kok, on the Kowloon side, is a popular destination, but many shoppers go directly to the factory outlet stores near the airport, or to the scores of shopping malls that are completely unaffected by the protests.

The yuan keeps strengthening against the dollar, which means Hong Kong remains a good value option for mainland shoppers. While most do not understand what the Hongkongers are complaining about, they are more likely to be swayed by the price and availability of goods in Hong Kong’s shops than by fears of democratic contagion.