Australia: Retail sales rebound in January
Nominal retail sales in January bounced back and expanded 0.5% over the previous month in seasonally-adjusted terms, swinging from December’s 4.1% slump.
A healthy increase in food retailing led the rise, while declines were recorded in clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing, household goods retailing, and department stores—which were negatively affected by a three day lockdown in Brisbane.
In annual terms, retail sales grew 10.3% in January, matching December’s print. Meanwhile, annual average growth in retail sales rose from 6.6% in December to 7.3% in December, marking the best reading since April 2008.