MEDIA RELEASE
6 February 2017	Embargoed: 11.30 am (Canberra time)	10/2017

Australian retail turnover fell 0.1 per cent in December 2016, seasonally adjusted, according to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Retail Trade figures.

This follows a rise of 0.1 per cent in November 2016.

In seasonally adjusted terms, there were falls in household goods retailing (-2.3 per cent), and other retailing (-0.2 per cent). These falls were offset by rises in food retailing (0.5 per cent), clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (1.4 per cent), cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services (0.2 per cent), and department stores (0.3 per cent).

The fall in household goods retailing is the result of a fall in the Hardware, building and garden supplies retailing industry subgroup, which fell 6.6 per cent in December after rises in each of the previous four months.

In seasonally adjusted terms, there were falls in Victoria (-0.4 per cent), New South Wales (-0.3 per cent), and the Australian Capital Territory (-0.7 per cent). There were rises in South Australia (1.2 per cent), Western Australia (0.6 per cent), the Northern Territory (1.1 per cent) and Tasmania (0.5 per cent). Queensland was relatively unchanged (0.0 per cent).

The trend estimate for Australian retail turnover rose 0.3 per cent in December 2016 following a 0.3 per cent rise in November 2016. Compared to December 2015, the trend estimate rose 3.2 per cent.

Online retail turnover contributed 3.8 per cent to total retail turnover in original terms.

In seasonally adjusted volume terms, turnover rose 0.9 per cent in the December quarter 2016, following a relatively unchanged result (0.0 per cent) in the September quarter 2016. The main contributors to this rise were household goods retailing (2.5 per cent), clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (1.5 per cent) and food retailing (0.3 per cent).

More detailed industry analysis and further information on the statistical methodology is available in Retail Trade, Australia (cat no. 8501.0).

Media note:

• For a detailed definition of each industry group and subgroup in terms of its ANZSIC 2006 classes, please refer to paragraph 6 of the Explanatory Notes.
• Estimates of online retail turnover are only available in original terms and are not available in seasonally adjusted or trend terms.
• Along with the monthly current price estimates that reflect both price and volume changes, the March, June, September and December publications also present quarterly estimates that reflect volume and price changes separately.
• When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.
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