Australia retail sales dropped -4.0% mom in August 2020, more than reversing the 3.2% mom rise in July. Victoria, which faced stage 3 and 4 restrictions, dropped -12.6% mom. Decline was also recorded in New South Wales (-2.0%), Queensland (-1.1%), South Australia (-0.9%), Western Australia (-0.4%), and Tasmania (-0.2%). sales rose only in The Northern Territory (2.0%), and the Australian Capital Territory (0.7%)
All industries fell, including household goods retailing (-6.0%), other retailing (-5.1 per cent), clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (-10.5 per cent), cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services (-6.6%), and department stores (-8.9%) saw large falls. Food retailing (-0.2%) saw a minor fall.
