SYDNEY — Australia was already impacted by its worst drought on record. But the devastating bushfire season, now compounded by the coronavirus outbreak, has made for a summer horribilis.
According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released Thursday, retail turnover for the month of December fell 0.5 percent to 27.77 billion Australian dollars, or $18.74 billion, seasonally adjusted, following a 1 percent gain in November, fueled by Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales promotions.
Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmermann said while year-over-year growth was the key index when interpreting retail sales data — 2.66 percent growth in December, a result he described as “pedestrian” and “disappointing” — month-over-month falls in department stores (down 2.8 percent); clothing, footwear and personal accessories (down 1.5 percent) and household goods (down 0.3 percent) — three of the four worst December results, in categories where November retail events were widely promoted — underlined the point that December sales were likely pulled forward.
“A similar factor seems evident where bushfires are concerned, with the worst monthly results in South Australia (down 1.34 percent) and New South Wales (down 1.24 percent) occurring in two of the states worst affected by bushfires,” said Zimmermann.
The ARA also anticipates that January’s
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