CHINA. Offshore duty free sales in Hainan province reached RMB4.75 billion (US$745 million) in April, an increase of 980% year-on-year.
Total sales, including duty paid, reached RMB5.2 billion (US$814 million), a +997% increase over the same period in 2020.
For the first four months of 2021, duty free sales totalled around US$2.85 billion. Full-year 2020 revenues reached around US$5 billion, meaning that Hainan is easily on course to smash that record-breaking performance in 2021.
Comparative performance for the first six months will be bolstered by the fact that the enhanced duty free shopping policy was not introduced until 1 July last year and by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Hainan tourism and sales in early 2020.
The arrival of new licence holders in Haikou (Hainan Development Holdings and Shenzhen Duty Free) and Sanya (CNSC and Hainan Tourism Investment Duty Free Co) in late 2020 and early 2021 has also spurred revenue growth.
The April results followed a +427.4% increase in duty free sales in March from a low, COVID-hit 2020 base to RMB5.25 billion (US$821.9 million). The number of transactions in March soared by +356.4% and the number of items purchased by +411.5%.
For the first quarter, offshore duty free sales rose by +355.7% to RMB13.6 billion (US$2.1 billion).
Footnote: Every fortnight The Moodie Davitt Report publishes Hainan Curated, in association with Foreo, a selection of all recent stories from the offshore duty free sector in Hainan province.
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