Singapore retail sales rebound 54% in April, picking up from last year's lockdown

SINGAPORE retail sales grew for the third straight month in April, off the low base from last year's "circuit breaker" lockdown when most shops were shuttered.

Still, sales remained below pre-pandemic levels, the Department of Statistics (SingStat) said on Friday. Some 11.2 per cent of April's transactions came from online shopping.

Retail sales rose by 54 per cent year on year to S$3.3 billion, picking up from the increase of 6.3 per cent in March, according to SingStat data.

The rebound in till takings slightly underperformed the 58.6 per cent expansion forecast by private-sector economists in a Bloomberg poll.

And when the 261.3 per cent jump in big-ticket motor vehicle purchases was excluded, retail sales were up by a more modest 39.2 per cent on the year before.

Against the low base, most retail segments posted "significant year-on-year increases".

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These ranged from growth of 17.3 per cent for computer and telecom gear and 31.2 per cent for cosmetics, toiletries and medical goods, to surges of 442.6 per cent for clothes and shoes, and 646.8 per cent for watches and jewellery.

But higher sales of groceries in the year-ago period - when Singapore residents had to stay at home - led to year-on-year declines in sales at mini-marts and convenience stores (-16.8 per cent) and supermarkets and hypermarkets (-30.2 per cent).

On a seasonally adjusted, monthly basis, retail sales slipped by 1.3 per cent against March, and declined by 0.8 per cent when vehicles were excluded.

Meanwhile, food and beverage (F&B) receipts grew by 73.4 per cent year on year, to S$693 million, with online purchases making up 24.4 per cent of sales.

Sales were up for fast food outlets (+34.8 per cent); cafes, food courts and other eateries (+59.6 per cent); and restaurants (+172.9 per cent)

But overall F&B sales still remained below pre-Covid-19 levels, SingStat noted.

Caterers also registered a 31.7 per cent drop in receipts in April, on lower demand from foreign worker dormitories, where catering companies had supplied meals during the lockdown in the year-ago period.

On a seasonally adjusted, monthly basis, F&B sales shed 1.3 per cent.