Hong Kong October retail sales drop 24.3% as protests persist

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong's retail sales fell 24.3% in October from a year earlier as anti-government protest gripped the city.

Sales fell to HK$30.1 billion (3 billion pounds) in October, government data showed on Monday, a ninth consecutive month of decline. September's drop was a revised 18.2%.

In volume terms, retail sales in October fell 26.2%, compared with a revised 20.3% drop in September.

(Reporting by Donny Kwok and Twinnie Siu; Editing by Alexander Smith)