Last year’s November sales figures are encouraging according to the Australian Retailers Association (ARA), with a year on year growth of 3.27 per cent.
ARA executive director Russell Zimmerman believes the growth is a positive sign for the industry as retailers remain hopeful that the ARA and Roy Morgan predicted pre-Christmas sales figure of $48.1 billion over the Christmas trading period will be achieved.
“We won’t be able to confirm the actual pre-Christmas spend until December retail figures are released next month,” he explains.
“However, after speaking with retailers across the country, many reported a strong start to Christmas sales in November due to many consumers getting on top of their holiday shopping early.”
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, New South Wales performed the strongest with a 4.25 per cent growth year on year, while all other states remained steady (VIC 3.45 per cent, QLD 3.67 per cent, TAS 3.72 per cent, SA 2.82 per cent, ACT 6.44 per cent). Due to a downturn in resources, sales in WA (-0.57 per cent) and NT (0.31 per cent) were weakest.
“Though these figures don’t necessarily reflect Christmas sales, they generally provide a strong indication as to what we can expect for retail sales over the festive season,” Zimmerman says.
“I’m confident December figures will prove to be strong as many consumers, including myself, usually leave their Christmas shopping until the last minute.”
From October 2016 to November 2016, household goods retailing rose by 0.2 per cent, while department stores sales only grew by 0.3 per cent. Year on year retail growth (November 2015 to November 2016) for household goods increased by 3.08 per cent, while department stores were down -3.21 per cent.
By Marion Gerritsen
