Fresh figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) suggest a slow recovery for local retail.
The latest ABS Retail Trade figures
reveal that Australian retail turnover rose 0.2 per cent in April
2013, seasonally adjusted, following a fall of 0.4 per cent in March
2013.
While the largest contributor to the rise in April 2013
was food retailing (0.5 per cent), this was followed by clothing,
footwear and personal accessory retailing (1.8 per cent).
In current prices, the trend estimate for clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing fell 0.2 per cent in April 2013. However, the seasonally adjusted estimate rose by 1.8 per cent.
By industry subgroup, the trend
estimate fell for clothing retailing (-0.2 per cent) and footwear and
other personal accessory retailing (-0.1 per cent). By comparison,
the seasonally adjusted estimate rose for clothing retailing (3.2 per
cent) and fell for footwear and other personal accessory retailing
(-0.7 per cent).
Department stores in general remained
lacklustre. In current prices, the trend estimate for department
stores was relatively unchanged (0.0 per cent) in April 2013. The
seasonally adjusted estimate fell 2.0 per cent.
By state, New
South Wales (0.6 per cent) was the largest contributor to the rise,
followed by Victoria (0.3 per cent), the Australian Capital Territory
(1.0 per cent), Queensland (0.1 per cent) and South Australia (0.2
per cent).
These rises were partially offset by
falls in Western Australia (-0.8 per cent), Tasmania (-1.0 per cent)
and the Northern Territory (-1.6 per cent). Over the longer term, New
South Wales remains the strongest contributor to growth (up 0.6 per
cent in trend terms).
Through the year, Australian retail
turnover rose 3.1 per cent in April 2013, seasonally adjusted,
compared to April 2012.
The trend estimate for Australian
retail turnover rose 0.4 per cent in April 2013. This follows a 0.4
per cent rise in March 2013. Through the year, the trend estimate
rose 3.2 per cent in April 2013 compared to April 2012.