Singapore’s retail sales increase 2% on year in September

According to data released by Singapore’s Department of Statistics (SingStat), the country’s retail sales increased 2% on the year in September owing to a surge in motor vehicles sales. Excluding motor vehicles, Singapore’s total September retail sales fell by 1.9% from a year earlier.

Meanwhile, overall retail sales dropped by 0.7% on a monthly basis while retail sales excluding motor vehicles rose by 0.7% in September.

The total retail sales value was reported at S$3.5 billion ($2.47 billion) in September, up from S$3.4 billion in the same month a year earlier.

Retail sales in the motor vehicles sector rose 20.4% year over year in September, posting the largest increase among all sectors while the largest decline was seen in the computer and telecommunications equipment sector, which decreased 9.6% when compared to the last year.

Singapore’s retail sales of food and beverage services, optical goods and books, wearing apparel and footwear, department stores, supermarkets and watches and jewelry fell between 2.9% and 7.8% in September compared with the same month of last year. However, the retail sales of petrol service stations and recreational goods, medical goods and toiletries, furniture and household equipment, and mini-marts and convenience stores increased between 0.1% and 6.7% in September from a year earlier.

The total sales value of food and beverage services in September was reported at SGD687 million ($486 million) when compared to SGD664 million ($470 million) in the same month of 2015.