Australia’s retail sales drop -0.4% in December, a big miss on expectations
|Australia's consumption, as represented by retail sales, dropped sharply in the month of December, missing estimates, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported on Tuesday. The retail sales arrived at -0.4 percent month-on-month, compared to the forecast of -0.1 percent and down from previous month's reading of 0.4 percent.
December Key Points (via ABS)
Current Prices
The trend estimate rose 0.2% in December 2018. This follows a rise of 0.2% in November 2018 and a rise of 0.2% in October 2018.
The seasonally adjusted estimate fell 0.4% in December 2018. This follows a rise of 0.5% in November 2018 and a rise of 0.3% in October 2018.
In trend terms, Australian turnover rose 3.2% in December 2018 compared with December 2017.
The following industries rose in trend terms in December 2018: Food retailing (0.2%), Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (0.3%), Other retailing (0.1%), Cafes restaurants and takeaway food services (0.1%), and Department stores (0.1%). Household goods retailing was relatively unchanged (0.0%).
The following states and territories rose in trend terms in December 2018: Queensland (0.5%), Victoria (0.2%), Western Australia (0.3%), the Australian Capital Territory (0.3%), South Australia (0.1%), and Tasmania (0.1%). New South Wales (-0.1%), and the Northern Territory (-0.4%) both fell in trend terms in December 2018.
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