Australia’s retail sales volumes fall 0.4% in Q1

AUSTRALIAN retail sales volumes fell by more than expected in the March quarter as punishing mortgage rates and declining real incomes ate into spending power, data showed on Tuesday.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported real retail sales dropped 0.4 per cent in the first quarter, under market expectations for a fall of 0.2 per cent.

Sales volumes were down 1.3 per cent on a year earlier, a dismal result usually only seen during recessions or Covid-19 lockdowns. Rapid population growth meant sales on a per capita basis were down a steep 3.6 per cent for the year. REUTERS