Fed: Retail spending jumps 7.7 per cent in June

AAP General News (Australia)
08-02-2000
Fed: Retail spending jumps 7.7 per cent in June

CANBERRA, Aug 2 AAP - A pre-GST spending frenzy boosted retail trade by almost $1 billion
in June.

Australian retail trade rose 7.7 per cent in June to a seasonally adjusted $13.166
billion, from a revised $12.229 billion in May, figures from the Australian Bureau of
Statistics showed.

Year-on-year, retail trade rose 10.5 per cent.

Many businesses bought end of financial year sales forward to June to beat GST price
rises on clothing, soft furnishings and other goods.

Food retailing recorded a slight rise in June after five months of decline.

Spending in department stores, on clothing and soft good retailing, household good
retailing and recreational good retailing also increased in the month.

The Australian Capital Territory recorded the largest increase in retail turnover,
$281.3 million in June up from $246.3 million.

The largest growth in the ACT was in food retailing.

Tasmania recorded the smallest retail growth for the month, $276.9 million up from
$267.5 million.

Most economists surveyed by AAP expected a seasonally adjusted rise of 5.0 per cent
in retail trade in June with predictions ranging from increases of 3.0 per cent to 10
per cent.

AAP eg/mfh/bdm/br

KEYWORD: RETAIL

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