May 2016: Retail Sales Decreased By 1.4%
Retail sales in May 2016 decreased 1.4% below the $97.9 million recorded in May 2015 – and when adjusting for the annual retail sales rate of inflation, measured at 1.4% in May, the volume of retail sales decreased 3.0% — according to the recently released Retail Sales Index.
“Four of the seven sectors experienced decreases in sales revenue. Apparel stores registered the largest loss in sales receipts of 7.3%. Motor vehicle stores recorded the largest increase in sales of 13.0%.” the report said.
“After adjusting for the annual retail sales rate of inflation, measured at 1.4% in May, the volume of retail sales decreased 3.0%. Excluding Sundays, there were 25 shopping days during the month, the same as May 2015.
Chart extracted from the report:
“Sales revenue for apparel stores contracted 7.3% in value terms and 6.1% in volume terms. The decline reflected lower demand for current inventory as well as lower tourist demand.
“Sales receipts for the all other store types sector fell 6.1% year-over-year. Gross receipts for marine and boat suppliers decreased 36.6% due to less inventory available for sale and fewer sales of large-ticket items.
“Lower tourist demand was reported at tourist-related stores which experienced a 3.5% decline in sales. Receipts for the sale of furniture, appliances and electronics dropped 3.3%. Pharmacies reported a 1.4% drop in gross receipts. After factoring for inflation, the sales volume of the all other store types category fell 7.8%.
“Receipts from food sales weakened 1.5% while sales revenue for liquor stores decreased 1.2% year-over-year. The sales volume of food stores and liquor stores decreased 3.8 and 5.6% respectively.
“The value of fuel sales for service stations rose 3.3% while volume sales increased 2.3%. The rise in revenue was due partly to the 0.6% increase in the cost of fuel.”
The full 2016 May Retail Sales Index is below [PDF here]:
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