SINGAPORE’S retail sales grew 2.7 per cent year on year in March, extending the previous month’s 8.6 per cent growth, according to data released by the Department of Statistics (SingStat) on Friday (May 3).
March’s result was largely in line with private-sector economists’ estimates, who expected retail sales to grow 2.8 per cent year on year in a Bloomberg poll. It also marks a normalisation from February’s growth, which was driven by receipts from Chinese New Year (CNY) festivities.In particular, discretionary consumer spending in categories such as wearing apparel and footwear, department stores and recreational goods moderated in March after February’s festive “buoyancy”, noted DBS economist Chua Han Teng.
On a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales fell 1 per cent, reversing from February’s 3.1 per cent growth.
March’s total retail sales stood at S$4.2 billion. Online sales accounted for 11.7 per cent, higher than the 10.8 per cent recorded in February. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales grew 2 per cent from the year-ago period, though it was down 0.3 per cent on a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis.
Ten of the 14 retail sales categories recorded year-on-year growth in March.
Food and alcohol sales were the fastest-growing category for the second straight month, said Chua, adding that the “robust performance” was likely driven by foreign tourist spending, which was lifted by Taylor Swift’s six concerts in March. Many travelled to Singapore to attend the shows.
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While this one-off boost is likely to fade, food and alcohol sales will continue to be underpinned by the recovery in Singapore’s foreign tourist arrivals over the coming months, Chua added. Tourism arrivals rose to a new post-pandemic record high of close to 1.5 million in March, about 95 per cent of pre-Covid levels in the corresponding month in 2019.
Chua also said: “We expect 2024’s tourism uptick to be supported by improving flight capacity, the ongoing return of Chinese tourists that would be boosted by the mutual visa-free travel arrangement between Singapore and China, and a healthy pipeline of events.”
On a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis, sales grew for five of the categories. Food and alcohol recorded the largest increase of 15.1 per cent; computer and telecommunications equipment posted the largest sequential fall of 8.5 per cent.
Separately, sales of food and beverage (F&B) services rose 5 per cent year on year, extending the 14.8 per cent growth recorded in February. It was down 3.1 per cent on a monthly seasonally adjusted basis, compared with the 8 per cent growth in the previous month. On the year, growth was recorded across restaurants (7.1 per cent), food caterers (13.5 per cent), and cafes, food courts and other eating places (3.8 per cent). The exception was fast-food outlets, which declined 1.4 per cent. On a month-on-month, seasonally adjusted basis, only restaurants recorded an increase of 0.3 per cent. Fast-food outlets (-1.6 per cent), food caterers (-10.5 per cent) and cafes, food courts and other eating places (-5 per cent) posted falls.
F&B services receipts amounted to S$982 million in March. Online sales accounted for an estimated 23.1 per cent of this sum, higher than the 20.8 per cent recorded in February.
