Singapore retail sales – excluding motor vehicles – continued to decrease in August, but at a slower pace compared to the previous months.

The city-state saw a 1.5 per cent drop in retail sales for the month, a slight improvement from the 2.3 per cent reduction in July and 3.1 per cent decline in June. 

According to the Department of Statistics, the total retail sales value was about SG$3.5 billion (US$2.7 billion), of which 14.1 per cent were from online retail sales. 

Within the retail trade sector, wearing apparel & footwear reported the biggest drop in sales – at 6.7 per cent, followed by department stores with a 6.2 per cent decrease. The remaining majority also saw poorer results, such as petrol service stations, optical goods & books, and recreational goods.

The food & alcohol sector went against the trend with a 8.1 per cent increase. Retailers of cosmetics, toiletries & medical goods and supermarkets & hypermarkets als enjoyed improvements of 3.1 per cent and 2.2 per cent, respectively.

Sales of food & beverage services rose 4.3 per cent year on year to SG$1 billion, extending the 0.2 per cent growth in July. Online sales accounted for 24.2 per cent.