The Department of Statistics (DOS) of Singapore announced on Friday that the country’s retail sales increased 27.4 percent in July on a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, following a revised 50.7 percent increase in the previous month.
All retail industries, except for the supermarkets and hypermarkets industry and the mini-marts and convenience stores industry, recorded month-on-month growths in sales in July, which was attributed by DOS to a lower base in June when most physical stores were closed until June 18.
Singapore implemented Circuit Breaker measures from April 7 to June 1 to contain the COVID-19 transmission. The gradual resumption of business activities started for Phase One on June 2 and Phase Two on June 19.
On a year-on-year basis, Singapore’s retail sales decreased 8.5 percent in July, an improvement from a revised 27.7 percent decline recorded in June. The estimated total retail sales value in July was about 3.3 billion Singapore dollars (about 2.42 billion US dollars). Of these, online retail sales made up an estimated 11 percent.
Excluding motor vehicles, Singapore’s retail sales in July declined by 7.7 percent year on year but grew 19.5 percent month on month.
DOS also announced that the sales of food and beverage services decreased by 25.4 percent year on year but grew 29.2 percent month on month in July. The sales value was estimated at 665 million Singapore dollars, of which the proportion of online sales hit an estimated 21.1 percent in July.