Australia’s retail sales turnover increased by 0.4% mom to AUD 35.3m in March, surpassing expectations of 0.2% mom. Year-on-year, sales turnover was up by 5.4% compared to the same month a year ago.
Ben Dorber, Australian Bureau of Statistics Head of Retail Statistics, noted that while retail sales recorded a third consecutive rise in March, pull-back in spending on discretionary goods has kept monthly turnover at a similar level to six months ago.
Dorber also noted the importance of analyzing quarterly retail sales volumes, set to be released next week, in order to understand the impact of consumer prices on recent turnover growth, particularly as CPI data showed high inflation levels despite slower growth in March quarter.
Full Australia retail sales release here.
