Luxury fashion, leathergoods, and watches and jewellery are expected to be the most popular purchases during Chinese New Year. Source: Global Blue.

Chinese New Year is no longer the retail tour de force for Chinese shoppers it has been in recent years, according to tax refund specialist Global Blue.

While the firm is anticipating a *‘short surge’ in shoppers over the forthcoming period (25 January to 8 February), the transactional outlook for the next 90 days points to a 15% decline in shopper volumes compared to the previous quarter, which took in Golden Week and Christmas.

During Golden Week in October, Chinese shoppers accounted for 30% of tax free spending (+3% yoy) with an average transaction value of £1,092 (US$1,430), says Global Blue.

Over Christmas in December, mainland China took a 21% share of tax free spending (+3% yoy) with an average transaction value of £1,104 (US$1,446).

Last year, shopper transactions from China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan totalled 41,809.

*According to Global Blue, data from ForwardKeys reveals hotel and flight bookings for Chinese New Year are up 18% for the period year-on-year.