Retail sales volume falls for the 31st straight month

Retailers continue to be battered by the recession as sales plummeted for the 31^st straight month.

Consumers spent $2.4 million less locally in November 2010 than in 2009.

Retail sales were down 2.8 per cent — but after adjusting for inflation, they really decreased by 5.4 per cent.

The last time retail sales volume showed an increase was April 2008 — 31 months ago. January 2009 was the last time retail sales value was up.

Residents spent $93.4 million in November 2010 compared with $94.0 million in 2009.

Overseas spending was up 2.6 per cent, with residents shelling out $7.9 million in 2010 compared with $7.7 million in 2009.

Outlays on furniture, appliance and electronics contributed most to this rise and the value of these declarations grew by 4.3 per cent.

Locally, the building materials industry was hurt most by the November sales decline. Receipts decreased by 26.3 per cent compared to year-on-year results.

Motorcycle sales were up but overall the motor vehicles sector fell 7.3 per cent.

The decline was attributed to weak consumer demand for the type of car models currently in stock.

Boat and marine supply sales fell 15.3 per cent, with marginal declines in tourist-related sales (1.3 per cent) and furniture, appliance and electronic sales (1.5 per cent).

Apparel sales showed a 2.4 per cent increase from November 2009.