Retail sales volume growth slowed in June, data from Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) showed on Wednesday. This points to a recovery that remains far from robust, with historically low interest rates failing to entice struggling consumers to splurge. But at least the sector is not shrinking.
On an annual basis, retail sales rose 10.4% in June, compared to 16.3% in May and 95.7% in April. These numbers should all be taken with a big pinch of salt. April last year was the initial and toughest month of the lockdown, when only groceries and other essentials could be bought and the economy was in freefall. As 2021 progresses, expect year-over-year growth numbers to slow further.
On a monthly basis, retail sales rose 0.6% from June, a trend which FNB senior economist Siphamandla Mkhwanazi said was “a more meaningful measure in the circumstances and crucial for the calculation of quarterly GDP growth. It was also a moderation from May, when growth of 2.3% was recorded on a monthly basis after falling 0.5% in April.
“This suggests a seasonally adjusted volume increase of 0.7% QoQ in 2Q21, well below the…
