Retail sales down 3.7% in September

Motor sales were the lone bright spot.

Retail sales in Singapore were once again propped up by robust car deals in September, data from the Department of Statistics show.

Retail sales fell 3.7% on a month-on-month basis in September. Excluding motor vehicle transactions, retail sales fell by a larger 4.5%.

On a year-on-year basis, overall retail sales grew 4.6%. Excluding motor vehicles, sales fell by 1.4%.

Motor vehicle transactions jumped by 48.3% on a year-on-year basis, driven by the huge number of car deregistrations this year.

The total retail sales value in September was estimated at $3.4 billion, higher than the $3.2 billion in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, sales of food & beverage services seasonally adjusted decreased 1.6% in September over the previous month. On a year-on-year basis, sales of food & beverage services declined 2.7%.

The total sales value of food & beverage services in September was estimated at $629 million, lower than the $647 million in September last year.