Hong Kong's annual retail sales to reach HKD806.6b by 2017

It's a more sustainable expansion.

According to Hang Seng, Hong Kong’s tourism sector is still on the cusp of a high-growth phase.

The number of inbound travellers is expected to rise 13% per annum for 2013-2017, bringing the total number of visitors to 90 million in 2017, from 48.6 million in 2012.

Here's more from Hang Seng:

Contribution to retail sales growth from local residents may diminish as income effects, the second key factor supporting growth, will however become less visible on the structural slowdown that Hong Kong is going through. 

While we believe Hong Kong’s retail sector will manage to deliver stellar growth in the years ahead, the sector will see a transition from a period of spectacular growth to more sustainable expansion.

By our estimates, annual retail sales would be running at around HKD806.6 billion by 2017, versus HKD445.5 billion in 2012.