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Homeasia economyAustralian retail sales jump 1.3% in July, a sign of resilience

Australian retail sales jump 1.3% in July, a sign of resilience

  • Australian retail sales jumped past all expectations in July as shoppers spent big on clothing and food in a sign of consumer resilience, though some of the gains likely reflected higher prices.
  • Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Monday showed retail sales climbed 1.3% in July from the previous month to a record A$34.7 billion ($23.8 billion), well above analyst forecasts of a 0.3% increase and the strongest result in four months.

Shoppers walking around Pitt Street Mall on June 07, 2022 in Sydney, Australia. Australian retail sales jumped past all expectations in July as shoppers spent big on clothing and food in a sign of consumer resilience, though some of the gains likely reflected higher prices.Brendon Thorne | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Australian retail sales jumped past all expectations in July as shoppers spent big on clothing and food in a sign of consumer resilience, though some of the gains likely reflected higher prices.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Monday showed retail sales climbed 1.3% in July from the previous month to a record A$34.7 billion ($23.8 billion), well above analyst forecasts of a 0.3% increase and the strongest result in four months.

"It's clear that Australia's consumers are not throwing in the towel in the face of soaring consumer prices and rising interest rates," said Marcel Thieliant, a senior economist at Capital Economics.

"That reflects both the surge in labor income this year as employment growth has been very strong as well as the still-high household savings rate."

Sales were up a heady 16.5% on a year earlier, though some shops were shut last year due to coronavirus lockdowns.

"Turnover rose in five of the six retail industries in July. This shows that, despite cost-of-living pressures, households are continuing to spend," said Ben Dorber, head of retail statistics at the ABS.

Clothing, department stores, restaurants and food retailing all saw solid gains in the month, with higher prices for fresh food perhaps having an impact on the latter.

Inflation ran at a 21-year peak of 6.1% in the June quarter, led by energy, construction and food costs, though petrol prices have eased a little in recent weeks.

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