Spending across clothing, footwear and accessories in June this year has softened year-on-year according to new seasonally adjusted data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), with department stores and large online retailers seeing a very slight dip in sales.
Seasonally adjusted data amends figures to remove major impacts to numbers such as promotional events like Black Friday or Christmas.
The new ABS data shows that household spending overall reached $39.68 billion in June 2026, up 4.7 per cent compared to the same time last year. Annual growth has slowed from a 5.8 per cent lift in May.
This softening is also noted among fashion retailers, department stores and online platforms. ABS data reveals that clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing saw a 3.87 per cent lift in sales between June 2025 and June 2026, hitting $3.03 billion. This is softer than the 6.9 per cent growth seen in May YoY.
As for department stores and large online retailers, total sales here hit $1.68 billion in June 2026, which is down by 0.11 per cent compared to the same month last year.
In month-on-month terms, fashion spending fell by 0.9 per cent, with department stores and large online retailers down 1.6 per cent.
Australian Retail Council chief economist Glenn Fahey said the overall result showed consumers were continuing to spend, but the headline figure overstates the underlying strength of the retail economy.
“This was clearly a softer result than May, despite EOFY sales,” Fahey said. “Annual growth slowed from 5.8 per cent to 4.7 per cent during one of the retail calendar’s major promotional periods.
“Consumers have not stopped spending, but they are increasingly price-conscious and prepared to delay discretionary purchases until they see compelling value."
Fahey added the latest inflation figures also put the retail result into perspective.
“Headline inflation was running at 3.8 per cent in June, while trimmed mean inflation remained elevated at 3.6 per cent. Once inflation and discounting is taken into account, real spending growth is fairly soft – around one per cent on a broad inflation-adjusted comparison," he said.
“That is positive growth, but it is well below what retailers would typically expect in a strong trading environment. Consumers are still spending, but the volume of additional goods and services being purchased remains modest.”
Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services recorded the strongest annual growth at 7.1 per cent, followed by household goods retailing at 6.3 per cent.
Fahey said EOFY discounting may have supported customer activity but can lead to pressure on retailer margins.
“Turnover should not be confused with strong profitability, particularly during discount periods. Retailers continue to face elevated costs across wages, energy, insurance, freight, leasing and supply chains, while cautious consumers limit their ability to recover those costs," he said.
Total household spending on a monthly basis grew 0.8 per cent in June, seasonally adjusted, following a rise of 1.2 per cent in May and a fall of 1.0 per cent in April.
ABS head of business statistics Tom Lay said the 0.8 per cent lift was driven by discretionary spending rising for the second month in a row at 1.2 per cent, more so thanks to continued growth in transport and recreation and culture.
“New vehicle sales were the standout within transport this month, driving a 3.0 per cent rise,” Lay said.
“Electric vehicle sales increased significantly over the year and have continued that trend in June, accounting for a growing share of overall new vehicles sales as households adjust their spending behaviour in response to rising fuel prices.”
Air travel spending was the second largest contributor to the strength in transport spending, as it returned to levels seen before the travel disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict that began in March 2026.
Fuel spending has eased from the peak observed in March, as world oil prices fell and the reduction in the fuel excise duty from April 1 until June 30 continues to pass through to households.
Experimental data produced by the ABS suggests that the volume of fuel spending increased by 7.8 per cent in June, reflecting a 10.9 per cent decrease in prices. This follows a 0.2 per cent increase in May.
“The 1.4 per cent rise in recreation and culture came from a few categories in June, with households spending more on electronic goods, performing arts and other live entertainment, and gambling activity likely supported by major sporting events,” Lay said.
Some of the rise in spending on performing arts and live entertainment reflect advanced purchases of tickets for future performances. In the household spending indicator this activity is recorded as spending at the point of payment rather than when the service is consumed.