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Hong Kong property
Business

Hong Kong mall owner Wharf Reic looks to stimulate spending with promotions after posting flat profit

  • Harbour City and Times Square owner’s full-year 2023 profit fell 3 per cent to US$767.3 million even as revenue jumped 7 per cent
  • The company said it hopes to navigate and overcome headwinds through promotional activities with the Hong Kong government

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Shoppers are seen outside Harbour City shopping centre on Canton Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. Photo: Jonathan Wong
Cheryl Arcibal
Wharf Reic, the owner of Harbour City and Times Square malls, said it would undertake promotional activities to get residents and tourists to loosen their purse strings after recording a slightly lower profit last year.
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Net profit slipped 3 per cent to just over HK$6 billion (US$767.3 million) despite a 7 per cent jump in revenue to HK$13.3 billion.

The company’s net debt fell to HK$36.3 billion, the lowest since its listing in 2017.

“The group shall enhance tenant offerings and promotional activities in collaboration with the government’s campaigns to stimulate tourists’ and locals’ spending amid competition,” Wharf Reic said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Thursday. “Through the joint efforts, Hong Kong will navigate and overcome the present headwinds together.”

Shoppers seen entering Times Square in Causeway Bay. Photo: Elson LI
Shoppers seen entering Times Square in Causeway Bay. Photo: Elson LI
The city’s retail segment is unlikely to see significant upside this year, with the Hong Kong Tourism Board forecasting 46 million people will visit the city, a 35 per cent increase from last year, but just 70 per cent of the 65 million in 2018. Meanwhile, estimated spending per overnight visitor is expected to shrink by as much as 16.4 per cent to HK$5,800 this year from HK$6,939 in 2023.
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Wharf Reic said although positive signs such as potential interest-rate cuts and the expansion of a scheme that allows more individuals from mainland China to visit Hong Kong could help the retail segment, volatility could also arise from a global economic slowdown, geopolitical tensions and the US presidential election.

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