HONG KONG - The Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong said on Friday that the city's business receipts in value terms of all major service industries showed increases in the first quarter when compared with the same period last year.
The year-on-year increase was more prominent in the financing (except banking) industry, rising 54.9 percent. Other major service industries that recorded significant increases in business receipts included the courier, moving up 34.4 percent, wholesale, 33 percent, import and export, 24.5 percent, and real estate industries, 20.2 percent.
Analyzed by service domain, business receipts of the computer and information technology services domain rose 23.6 percent in the first quarter over the same period last year. The increase was mainly due to the rise in the trading of computer and related products.
During the same period, the tourism, convention and exhibition services domain also recorded a similar growth in business receipts, up 21.7 percent, due to notable increases in the number of incoming visitor arrivals and tourist spending in the city.
Compared with the fourth quarter last year, business receipts of most of the major service industries in the first quarter recorded decreases. The courier industry recorded the largest decrease in business receipts, falling 12.1 percent, followed by real estate, 9.6 percent, and import and export trade, 9 percent.
A noticeable quarter-to-quarter growth was recorded in retail, rising 7.8 percent, mainly due to the pick-up in inbound tourism and consumer spending.
