Tourism Boosts Luk Fook Results

RAPAPORT... Luk Fook's profit and revenue rose in fiscal 2018, buoyed byincreased tourism from mainland China, it said Wednesday. The company's profit climbed 33% to $174.6 million (HKD 1.37billion) in the 12 months ending March 31, a higher rise than it expected. Revenue grew 14% to $1.86 billion (HKD 14.58 billion). "With the improved overall economic environment andincreased visitor arrivals in Hong Kong and Macau..., the business performance inthe second half of the year was even better than [our] expectation," the jewelryretailer said. Revenue from Hong Kong edged up 7% to $943.9 million (HKD7.41 billion), while sales from mainland China spiked 22% to $645.2million (HKD 5.06 billion). Macau revenue grew 22% to $268.5 million (HKD 2.11billion) for the same period. Luk Fook is optimistic about fiscal 2019, as tourism to HongKong continues to increase. In 2017,visitors from mainland China increased 4% to 44.4 million, according tothe Hong Kong Tourism Board. The number of tourists rose 13% to 12.2 million inthe January-to-March period. "Since April 2018, market sentiment [has] remained positive,especially for the Hong Kong and Macau market," the company said. However, thepotential US-China trade war could affect this outlook, it noted. The retailer opened 137 new shops during the past fiscalyear, including 132 in mainland China. The group had a total of 1,642 storesglobally as of March 31.