Hong Kong retail leasing reaches nearly half of 2025 full-year total

Leasing volume reached 337,100 sq ft in Q2 alone.

Hong Kong's retail market continued to recover in the second quarter of 2026, supported by stronger tourist arrivals, rising retail sales and healthy leasing demand, according to CBRE.

Retail sales grew 8.6% year-on-year (y-o-y) in April and 7.9% in May, extending a 13-month growth streak after expanding 12.1% in Q1. Visitor arrivals also remained supportive, rising 9.1% y-o-y following 17% growth in the first quarter.

CBRE noted leasing activity in core shopping districts accelerated, with leasing volume jumping 55% quarter-on-quarter to 337,100 sq ft. This brought H1 leasing activity to 48% of the full-year total achieved in 2025.

Food and beverage operators accounted for around one-third of leasing demand during the quarter, while fashion remained the second most active sector amid expansion by mainland Chinese brands. The cosmetics segment also recorded its strongest leasing quarter since Q2 2023.

Improving occupancy pushed vacancy for high street shops in core districts down 0.3 percentage points to 6.5%, the second-lowest level since late 2019. Prime street rents rose 1.0% q-o-q, extending growth to a sixteenth consecutive quarter and bringing year-to-date rental growth to 1.8%.

CBRE expects prime retail rents to continue growing gradually as vacancy declines and retailers continue to reposition their store networks in response to evolving consumer demand.