Simon Wong Ka-wo, President of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants & Related Trades, said restaurants have seen a near 15 percent growth thanks to the consumption vouchers.

“While restaurants are doing well in lunch hours, businesses during dinner time is not ideal,” said Wong.

He noted that with the city’s unemployment rate remains high and the income of citizens having decreased, the public has become more cautious about their consumption,” Wong explained.

Wong told a radio program on Monday morning that when the first round of consumption vouchers were distributed in April, the strict restriction on social gatherings meant that the food and beverage industry only accounted for 15 percent of the vouchers, or HK$5 billion.

However, restaurants are expected to account for 25 percent of this round’s HK$30 billion in consumption vouchers, attracting some HK$7.5 billion.

Wong pointed out that as social distancing measures are still in effect and the confirmed cases of Covid-19 have been on the rise, the industry must still be cautious amidst the pandemic.

Separately, Peter Shiu Ka-fai, a legislator from the wholesale and retail sector, said on the same radio program that citizens were eager to spend yesterday, and that the consumption vouchers will benefit the retail sector.

However, he said because registrants are only being distributed a first batch of HK$2,000 in e-vouchers compared to the HK$5,000 from the first round, the vouchers will be less effective, and that the sales of mid-to-high priced products, such as large electrical appliances, have not been as strong as in April.