Australian retail sales post biggest surge in history
Panic-buying of groceries and household products such as toilet paper, pasta, flour and handwash amid an escalating fear of the COVID-19 pandemic drove the biggest ever monthly jump in retail spending, ABS data has revealed.
An early estimate of retail turnover in March by the Australian Bureau of Statistics points to “unprecedented demand in the food retailing industry”, including a 22% surge in spending at supermarkets. Total retail turnover surged by a record 8.2%, or $2.2bn, to more than $30bn in March, the preliminary figures show. That beats the previous biggest increase in June 2000 as Australians rushed to the shops to beat the implementation of the GST the following month.
By comparison, turnover increased by just 0.5% in February. In dollar terms, the growth in spending in March was equivalent to the previous 42 months combined, Citi chief economist Josh Williamson says.
“This is the strongest seasonally adjusted rise ever published in the retail trade publication,” the ABS report says. Sales of toilet paper, tissues, pasta, flour and rice in March doubled versus the previous month. And monthly turnover for canned food, medicinal products and cleaning goods increased by more than 50 per cent, as Australians prepared for a massive outbreak of coronavirus infections —– a fear that has so far proved unfounded.
READ MORE: Coronavirus Commercial Property News
Retailers selling home office items such as computer equipment and furniture, also recorded strong sales in March, according to the ABS report, as employees around the country prepared to work from home.
However, economists warn the extraordinary spike in shopping is likely to be temporary.
ANZ economist Adelaide Timbrell says her bank’s more timely card-spending figures suggested “retail sales in April are likely to slump, as households finish stockpiling and focus on reserving spare cash instead of spare toilet paper”.
