Australia: Retail sales rebound in January
Latest reading: Retail sales grew 0.3% in month-on-month seasonally adjusted terms in January, which contrasted December’s 0.1% decrease. The reading reflected a broad-based upturn, with sales in the household goods, food retailing plus cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services sub-sectors all rebounding in January. Moreover, department store sales gained steam.
On an annual basis, retail sales rose 4.0% in January, above December’s 4.1% expansion. As a result, the trend improved modestly, with the annual average growth of retail sales coming in at 3.0% in January, up from December’s 2.8%.