Singapore retail sales inch up 1.4% to $3.7b in May 2016

Excluding motor vehicles, sales slipped 3.3%.

Singapore retail sales saw a marginal uplift in May 2016, as latest figures from the Singapore Department of Statistics show that seasonally adjusted retail sales for the month inched up 3% YoY to $3.7b. This reflects a climb from May 2015's $3.6b in the same month last year. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales slipped 3.3%.

Compared to the preceding month, retail sales edged up 1.4% over the previous month. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales climbed 2.3%.

Further, retail sales of motor vehicles soared 35.9% YoY in May 2016. Similarly, retail sales of furniture and household equipment inched up 3.1% over the same period, while medical goods and toiletries saw an uptick of 1.9%.

In contrast, retail sales of telecommunications apparatus and computers sank 17.3% YoY in May 2016, as petrol service stations' retail sales dropped 14.9% YoY.

Retail sales of recreational goods, optical goods and books, watches and jewellery, food and beverages, supermarkets, mini-marts and convenience stores, wearing apparel and footwear, as well as department stores sank between 1.9% and 8.7% in May.

Meanwhile, on a YoY basis, sales of food and beverage services edged up 0.7% in May 2016 to an roughly $690m, rising from May 2015's $685m. Seasonally adjusted sales of food and beverage services inched up 0.9% in May 2016 over the previous month.

Sales of other eating places and fast food outlets grew 6.7% YoY and 1% respectively in May. However, turnover of food caterers and restaurants slipped 3.7% and 3.6% respectively during this period.

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