Australia: Retail sales drop at softer pace in August
Retail sales fell 1.7% in month-on-month seasonally-adjusted terms in August, which followed July’s 2.7% decrease, which had marked the worst reading since December 2020.
The headline reading reflected contractions in housing goods retailing; clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing; department stores; and, cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services. This more than offset growth in food retailing.
In annual terms, retail sales fell 0.8% in August, following the 2.9% contracting logged in July. Meanwhile, annual average growth in retail sales eased to 7.0% in August from 7.5% in July.