7.1% REBOUND: Surprising item driving Aussie sales

Retail sales surged more than 7 per cent in the month of November led by eased lockdown restrictions in Melbourne, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Sales for the month of November reached nearly $32 billion nationally, after dropping to lows of around $25 billion in April.

It comes after a difficult year for retail, with COVID restrictions forcing retailers and hospitality venues to close their doors for months to contain the virus outbreak.

"The rise is led by Victoria (22.4 per cent) as Melbourne retail stores were able to trade for a full month in November,” director of Quarterly Economy Wide Surveys, Ben James said.

“Excluding Victoria, turnover rose 2.6 per cent.”

What’s driving retail sales?

The surprise surge in sales was driven by clothes footwear and personal accessories, which experienced a rise of 26.7 per cent according to the ABS.

After dropping to lows of $752 million in April, sales in this industry surged to more than $2.5 billion as of November.

Of that, the majority of sales are in clothing (27.4 per cent), followed by footwear and other personal accessories (25.3 per cent).

Aussies flocked to department stores in the month of November, with sales surging 21.1 per cent, while the household goods industry also experienced a significant rise, with electrical goods sales climbing a whopping 23.4 per cent.

The only industry to experience a decline was the food and liquor industry (-0.3 per cent), with liquor sales falling 4.1 per cent and supermarket sales remaining unchanged.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions across the country helped to boost trade, with online retail sales still maintaining their March and April highs as consumers turn to new ways of shopping.

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