Malaysia Q1 retail sales down 1.2%: retailers body

Kuala Lumpur

MALAYSIA'S retail sales contracted 1.2 per cent in the first three months of the year but are seen improving in the remaining quarters, according to Malaysia Retailers Association (MRA) members who said recovery would hinge mainly on external demand and the ringgit's performance.

The sales contraction was a disappointment to them as they had expected some growth albeit a slight 0.9 per cent following the 0.3 per cent expansion in the October-December 2016 period.

But weak Chinese New Year spending and elevated average fuel prices - the highest since the implementation of a managed float system in December 2014 - acted as big dampeners, Retail Group Malaysia (RGM) reported following a survey of MRA members in t…