Soft June retail sales point to poor second quarter

28 July 2023

 

Summary: Retail sales down 0.8% in June, lower than expected; Westpac: flat underlying trend implies declines in inflation-adjusted terms; ANZ: soft print points towards 0.5% fall in Q2 retail volumes; largest influence on result again from “other” (recreational goods, toiletries, cosmetics) sales. Growth figures of domestic retail sales spent most of the 2010s at levels below the post-1992 average. While economic conditions had been generally favourable, wage growth and inflation...

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