A shopping mall in Singapore (Source: straitstimes.com) Singapore (VNA) – Singapore’s total retail sales decreased by 52.1 percent in May – the highest decrease since 1986, the country’s Department of Statistics released on July 3.
The drop in May, which beat April’s previous record of 40.3 percent, marked the 16th consecutive month Singapore’s retail sales have experienced decreases.
Like in April, only two categories of retail sales saw growth in May. With essential services remaining open, sales at supermarkets and hypermarkets rose 56.1 percent, while those of minimarts and convenience stores rose 9.1 percent.
Sellers of discretionary items were again hit hardest by the forced closure, with sales of watches and jewellery plunging 96.9 percent. Department store sales sank 93.4 percent while shops selling clothes and footwear saw takings drop 89.1 percent.
May, however, is likely to be the worst month for retailers, with sales set to begin recovering as Singapore's partial lockdown began gradually lifting on June 2./.
VNA
