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Can Chinese tourists help save Australian retailers?

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Retailers in central Sydney and Melbourne hope the return of Chinese students and tourists, who used to spend $12 billion in Australia each year before the pandemic, will help offset a looming broader downturn in consumer spending.

While foot traffic in Melbourne is slightly below pre-pandemic levels, people are spending slightly more than they did before COVID-19, Melbourne city data shows. Consumers splashed $32 million on average each weekday in December, up from $30 million, when adjusted for inflation, during the same period in 2019.

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Carrie LaFrenz is a senior journalist covering retail/consumer goods. She previously covered healthcare/biotech. Carrie has won multiple awards for her journalism including financial journalist of the year from The National Press Club. Connect with Carrie on Twitter. Email Carrie at carrie.lafrenz@afr.com
Simon Evans writes on business specialising in retail, manufacturing, beverages, mining and M&A. He is based in Adelaide. Connect with Simon on Twitter. Email Simon at simon.evans@afr.com

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    Original URL: https://www.afr.com/companies/retail/can-chinese-tourists-help-save-australian-retailers-20230201-p5ch3s