Retail rental market to bottom out in the second half of 2017

More realignments for retail stores are to be expected in the coming days.

According to Knight Frnak, Hong Kong’s retail market continued to recover and recorded positive growth for 4 months in a row, with retail sales value rising another 0.1% year on year in June 2017. Visitor arrivals during the first half of the year gained 2.4% year on year, led by a 2.3% growth in visitors from the Chinese Mainland.

"Rental levels for prime street retail stores in different districts have mostly undergone adjustments. Recognising that additional capital cost is required to recruit new tenants and at the same time to avoid the risk of having empty shops for an extended period, landlords are now willing to make more adjustments during negotiations.
Following the stabilisation in overall retail sales, we expect to see more realignments for retail stores in the comings days. We believe the retail rental market is on track to bottom out in the second half of 2017."