Savills

Publication

Hong Kong Retail Leasing - Q1 2026

Article

Contacts & Related Research

 

Hong Kong’s Retail Leasing Market Recovery Continues, but Polarisation Deepens as Core Districts Stabilise First

  • Prime street shops pause after Q1 rebound: All four core districts were flat QoQ in Q2, consolidating earlier gains rather than entering another rental upswing.
  • Mall rents retreat, led by the New Territories: Major shopping centres fell 1.8% QoQ overall; New Territories (-2.7%) and Kowloon (-2.0%) saw the greatest pressure.
  • Discretionary spending leads an uneven recovery: Jewellery & watches (+22.1%) and consumer durables (+13.8%) outperformed, while supermarkets grew just 0.9% as everyday consumption remained weak.
  • Northbound spending weighs on neighbourhood malls: HK$55.7bn of annual northbound spending and around 10.4m monthly resident departures continue to divert local spending; high occupancy no longer guarantees rental income growth.
  • New supply intensifies competition for spending: Around 8m sq ft of retail space is due from 2026 onwards, raising the importance of tenant mix, positioning and the ability to attract destination visits.

Hong Kong’s retail market is improving, but the recovery remains selective. Sales growth is still being led by online and discretionary categories, while rents increasingly depend on catchment quality, tenant mix and destination strength rather than footfall alone.​

Jack Tong, Savills Research & Consultancy
Read more