Business turnover across the retail sector fell by 0.4 per cent in February this year compared to the prior month of January, new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) revealed week.
It is the fifth-lowest fall across the 13-industry aggregate, led by arts and recreation services which fell by 2.6 per cent month-on-month, followed by mining which fell 2.5 per cent.
Wholesale came third, falling 2 per cent, with professional, scientific and technical services down 1.5 per cent.
Despite slips in seven of the 13 industries, also including administration and support services as well as accommodation and food services, total month-on-month business turnover was up by 0.2 per cent. This was driven by manufacturing (up 4.6 per cent), transport, postal and warehousing (up 2.6 per cent) and electricity, gas, water and waste services (up 2.4 per cent).
In trend terms, total business turnover month-on-month is up 0.7 per cent.
“The rise in monthly business turnover continues the growth seen in recent months,” ABS head of business statistics Robert Ewing said.
“The 13-industry aggregate showed a 0.2 per cent rise in business turnover in seasonally adjusted terms, with mixed results across the industries in February.”
Compared to February 2024, turnover was higher for 11 of the 13 industries included in the indicator.
The industries that saw the strongest annual rises were manufacturing (up 14.2 per cent), and information media and telecommunications (up 11.3 per cent).
The industries with annual falls were mining (down 6.3 per cent), and arts and recreation services (down 4.7 per cent).
Retail trade was up a modest 3.7 per cent year-on-year in February 2025.