Singapore retail sales fell in January, however there is little to read from the figures.

The decline – of 8.1 per cent (excluding motor vehicles) – is totally attributable to the timing of Lunar New Year which fell in February this year and January last year, making year-on-year comparisons meaningless.

However, month-on-month sales fell a mere 1.5 per cent which suggests a solid January given the strength of Christmas trade in December.

Statistics Singapore estimates the total value of retail sales in January at S$3.9 billion, compared with $4.3 billion in January last year. It estimated online retail sales accounted for 4.1 per cent of total sales in the city state.

The only categories to register a rise in sales year-on-year were furniture and household equipment and optical goods and books, which rose 3.1 per cent and 7.8 per cent, respectively.

Seasonally adjusted sales of food and beverage services fell 4 per cent in January over December, and 13.2 per cent over January last year, again reflecting the timing of Lunar New Year.