Australia shoppers lured by discounts, shore up economy in 4Q

ustralian retail sales dipped in December as pay back for a Black Friday splurge the month before, but discounting helped shoppers make a desperately-needed contribution to economic growth over the whole fourth quarter.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Monday showed retail sales fell 0.1% in December from November, when they had risen by 0.7%.

The outcome was firmer than analyst forecasts for a 0.7% drop, helped by Cyber Monday promotions falling in December this year and discounting spread across the month.

Fourth quarter sales rose a real 1.0% to A$105.8 billion ($64.93 billion), topping forecasts of a 0.8% gain and the biggest increase since early 2022.

Source: FINANCE.YAHOO