SINGAPORE’S retail sales rose 3.6 per cent year on year in April, extending March’s growth, with the food and alcohol, and cosmetics, toiletries and medical goods industries posting the highest growth.

On a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales were up 0.3 per cent, easing from the 2.2 per cent growth in March, data from the Department of Statistics Singapore (SingStat) showed on Monday (Jun 5).

April’s estimated total retail sales value was S$3.9 billion, with online sales accounting for 12 per cent – one percentage point lower than March’s 13 per cent.

Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales grew by 4.2 per cent from the year-earlier period and gained 1.5 per cent from the previous month, on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Retail sales (excluding motor vehicles) have clocked their 14th consecutive month of on-year growth, noted OCBC chief economist Selena Ling.

“This suggests that domestic demand conditions remained healthy, aided by the robust local labour market and notwithstanding the 1 percentage point GST (goods and services tax) hike in January,” said Ling.

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Almost all retail sales categories saw year-on-year growth in sales in April, led by the food and alcohol (30.5 per cent) and cosmetics, toiletries and medical goods (16.8 per cent) categories.

“The retail sales year-on-year expansion for the third straight month in April was highly supported by the ongoing international travel recovery, as seen from still-robust food and alcohol sales,” said DBS economist Chua Han Teng.

Other segments with year-on-year growth include wearing apparel and footwear (13 per cent), optical goods and books (8.6 per cent) and mini-marts and convenience stores (6.9 per cent).

The exceptions were the motor vehicles, petrol service stations, furniture and household equipment, and computer and telecommunications equipment sectors.

Further recuperation in foreign visitor arrivals, spurred by Chinese tourists, should continue to support overall retail activity, Chua noted.

However, there were “some signs of cautious discretionary spending amid an uncertain economic environment, observed from the deceleration in motor vehicle sales growth and weak furniture and household equipment number”, Chua added.

The drag on petrol service station receipts is likely tied to rising car prices, said OCBC’s Ling.

“The soft patch seen in the furniture and household equipment, and computer and telecommunications equipment (sectors) is likely to be more reflective of workers returning to work in the office and the ongoing downturn in the global electronics industry as global growth decelerates,” she added.

On a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, about 60 per cent of the retail sales categories recorded sales gains, while 40 per cent declined.

Food and beverage services saw sales rise 15.1 per cent year on year and 1.6 per cent on a monthly seasonally adjusted basis, with year-on-year growth across all segments:

• Restaurants (8 per cent)

• Food caterers (61.4 per cent)

• Fast food outlets (19.8 per cent)

• Cafes, food courts, and other eating places (13.5 per cent)

SingStat attributed the continued growth in the food caterers sector – which grew 6.7 per cent month on month – to higher demand for both event and in-flight catering as restrictions eased on large-scale events, international travel, as well as social gatherings.