Australia: Retail sales drops in December
Retail sales sank 4.4% in month-on-month seasonally-adjusted terms in December, contrasting November’s 7.3% increase, weighed down by the spread of the Omicron variant.
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 a slight increase in food retailing.
In annual terms, retail sales expanded 5.2% in December, following the 6.2% increase logged in November. Meanwhile, annual average growth in retail sales eased to 5.3% in December from 5.8% in November.