Retail volumes in Australia dip by 0.2% in Q4

This breaks four consecutive months of growth.

Retail sales volumes in Australia slipped by 0.2% in the December quarter, breaking four consecutive months of growth, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reported.

This followed a 0.3% increase in the September quarter of 2022.

“Retail sales volumes fell for the first time since the September quarter 2021, with volumes falling across all non-food industries as consumers tightened discretionary spending in response to mounting cost of living pressures,” Ben Dorber, ABS head of retail statistics, said.

Dorber noted that retail prices remained high, even as the price growth slowed to 1.1% in December due to flat food retailing prices and additional discounting during Black Friday sales.

“This was the smallest rise in retail prices for 2022,” he said.

Moreover, the ABS reported department stores had the largest volume fall (-2.9%), followed by other retailing (-2.4%), clothing, footwear, and personal accessory retailing (-2.3%), and household goods retailing (-2.0%).

Growth in food-related volumes, meanwhile, was offset by the weakness in discretionary spending.

Food retailing (+2.1%) had the largest rise, with volumes rising for the first time since COVID-19 Delta lockdowns ended. Despite growth in this quarter, food retailing volumes were down 1.4% compared to the same period in 2021.

Cafes, restaurants, and takeaway food services (+0.3%) recorded a more subdued rise as trading conditions in the food-related industries continue to normalise.