Visa International announced here Tuesday that VISA card spending in Hong Kong reached a four-year record high of 128 billion HK dollars (US$16.4 billion) for 2004, representing a 22 percent increase year-on-year.

This strong growth in retail sales volume, or spending at the points of sale, is credited to healthier consumer sentiment in Hong Kong, as well as higher consumer usage of credit cards for everyday transactions and bill payments, Visa International said.

According to Prudence Chan, manager for Hong Kong/Macao of Visa International," now more than ever, people are using their credit cards in instances where they previously would have only considered using cash."

VISA card penetration in personal consumption expenditure rose to 16.1 percent in 2004, continuing the upward trend and demonstrating wider card acceptance.

Visa International said it maintains a positive outlook for 2005. Hong Kong's economy is projected to continue to grow in the coming year, and together with record tourist arrivals in 2004, these figures are likely to result in higher consumer confidence and increased card spending.

Visa Asia Pacific Tuesday also announced a 12.7 percent growth in retail sales volume for the whole of Asia Pacific market for 2004 totaling US$326 billion.

As the world's leading payment brand, Visa generates more than US$3 trillion in annual card sales volume. In Asia Pacific, Visa has a market share of 62 percent with more than 229 million VISA-branded cards in the region.

(Xinhua News Agency March 21, 2005)