Luk Fook’s jewellery sales improve in Q3; eCommerce sales outstanding

Hong Kong jewellery retailer Luk Fook Holdings (International) Ltd saw continued improvement in sales in the third quarter of the fiscal year 2021, thanks to sustained economic revival in China. The retail sales from October 1 to December 31, 2020, were down 29 per cent from year-ago figures but reflected a slower rate of decrease from a drop of 55 per cent in the second quarter.
According to Luk Fook, its same-store sales turned from a decline to an increase during the quarter, with effective control of COVID-19 in the mainland market; and e-commerce business was outstanding.
Sales of self-operated stores in China rose 4 per cent year on year in Q3, with those of gold products rising 11 per cent. Licensed shops, which account for around 96 per cent of Luk Fook’s total stores in China, recorded a similar trend.
Hong Kong and Macau meanwhile saw an upturn in sales, with the decline narrowing substantially to 35 per cent from 63 per cent in Q2. Macau recorded a loss of 20 per cent in jewellery sales in Q3 from about 80 per cent in the previous quarter. Online business in China was also booming, with a year-on-year increase of 54 per cent in sales.
Luk Fook anticipates that with the introduction of vaccines the COVID-19 pandemic will gradually subside, and the macroeconomy and retail sentiment will further improve.

Aruna Gaitonde, Editor in Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough&Polished