Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing declined 1% in July according to the latest data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
This decline follows a 2.0% rise for the sector in June.
Overall, Australian retail turnover declined by 0.1% in July (seasonally adjusted) following a 0.4% rise in June.
ABS director of quarterly economy wide surveys Ben James said that two thirds of the industries the body tracks experienced declines.
"There were falls in four of the six industries and six of the eight states and territories in July.
"Cafes, restaurants and takeaway services (-0.6%) led the falls.
"There were also falls in Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (-1.0%), Other retailing (-0.4%), and Department stores (-0.2%).
"Food retailing (0.3%), and Household goods retailing (0.1%) rose this month," he said.
Geographically, Queensland (-0.2%), New South Wales (-0.1%), South Australia (-0.5%), Victoria (-0.1%), the Australian Capital Territory (-0.5%), and Tasmania (-0.1%) experienced declines in July, while Western Australia (0.6%), and the Northern Territory (0.3%) increased.
According to the ABS stats, online retail contributed 6.1% to the total retail turnover – the same contribution it made in June. In July 2018 online retail turnover contributed 5.5%.
National Retail Association CEO Dominique Lamb said that despite the government's measures to boost spending, the results show that consumer confidence is still low.
"The July results are not good news for retailers, we were hopeful of far better figures following a strong sales performance for June.
"A drop in turnover shows that consumer confidence remains stubbornly low, despite measures such as the personal tax cuts and reduction in interest rates.
"It’s important during this period that people support retailers, particularly local small businesses, as we begin the march towards Christmas.
"Retail is one of the largest sectors in Australia and the biggest employer of young people, so it’s importance to the overall economy cannot be overstated.
"The NRA urges Aussie shoppers to not shy away from spending any extra money they’ve received in tax cuts or the drop in interest rates at their local retail outlet," she said.