Australian retail turnover rose 0.5 per cent in July 2025
Australia's retail sales unexpectedly rebounded strongly in July, indicating that consumer spending remains resilient despite the Australian Federal Reserve's 12 interest rate hikes.
Data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Monday showed that retail sales rose by 0.5 percent in July compared to a year earlier, surpassing expectations of a 0.3 percent increase. This growth was primarily driven by the non-food sector.
Ben Dorber, head of retail statistics at the Australian Bureau of Statistics, stated, "Increased spending on catering and takeaway related to the 2023 Women's World Cup and school holidays contributed to the growth in July."
The robust household spending contrasts with subdued consumer confidence and raises questions about whether the Australian Federal Reserve needs to take further action to curb demand and control prices. Policymakers will now focus on Wednesday's monthly inflation data in preparation for the September policy meeting scheduled for next week.
Earlier this month, the Australian Federal Reserve maintained its cash rate at 4.1 percent to assess the impact of its rapid rate hikes since May 2022, while not ruling out the possibility of further tightening. Given that consumption accounts for about 60 percent of Australia's GDP, retail sales are a key factor in determining interest rates.
Retail Trade, Australia
Monthly and quarterly estimates of turnover and volumes for retail businesses, including store and online sales.
Reference period June 2025
Turnover at current prices
| Jun-2025 ($m) | May-2025 to Jun-2025 (% change) | Jun-2024 to Jun-2025 (% change) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trend | 37,676.3 | 0.4 | 4.2 |
| Seasonally adjusted | 37,906.6 | 1.2 | 4.9 |
Turnover in volume terms
| June Qtr 2025 ($m) | March Qtr 2025 to June Qtr 2025 (% change) | June Qtr 2024 to June Qtr 2025 (% change) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trend | 106,038.5 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
| Seasonally adjusted | 106,008.5 | 0.3 | 1.5 |
Total retail turnover
Monthly turnover, current prices - seasonally adjusted estimate
Total retail turnover - level, current prices
Monthly turnover, current prices, by industry - percentage change from previous month
Monthly turnover, current prices, by state and territory - percentage change from previous month
Analysis by industry
Food retailing
Food retailing rose 0.9% ($137.5m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
By industry subgroup, the seasonally adjusted estimate:
rose 1.2% ($142.5m) for Supermarket and grocery stores.
fell 0.1% (-$1.4m) for Other specialised food retailing.
fell 0.2% (-$3.5m) for Liquor retailing.
Food retailing
Household goods retailing
Household goods retailing rose 2.3% ($138.3m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
By industry subgroup, the seasonally adjusted estimate:
rose 3.9% ($84.4m) for Electrical and electronic goods retailing.
rose 3.0% ($47.7m) for Furniture, floor coverings, houseware and textile goods retailing.
rose 0.3% ($6.2m) for Hardware, building and garden supplies retailing.
Household goods retailing
Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing
Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing rose 1.5% ($47.0m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
By industry subgroup, the seasonally adjusted estimate:
rose 2.0% ($42.7m) for Clothing retailing.
rose 0.4% ($4.3m) for Footwear and other personal accessory retailing.
Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing
Department stores
Department stores rose 1.9% ($36.6m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
Department stores
Other retailing
Other retailing rose 1.9% ($114.1m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
By industry subgroup, the seasonally adjusted estimate:
rose 2.4% ($63.7m) for Other retailing n.e.c..
rose 4.9% ($32.1m) for Other recreational goods retailing.
rose 0.7% ($17.9m) for Pharmaceutical, cosmetic and toiletry goods retailing.
rose 0.2% ($0.4m) for Newspaper and book retailing.
Other retailing
Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services
Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services fell 0.4% (-$24.5m) in June, in seasonally adjusted terms.
By industry subgroup, the seasonally adjusted estimate:
fell 0.6% (-$21.4m) for Cafes, restaurants and catering services.
fell 0.1% (-$3.2m) for Takeaway food services.
Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services
Online retailing
Total online retailing sales were $4,703.8m in June 2025, in seasonally adjusted terms. Seasonally adjusted online sales rose 3.9% ($175.4m), following a rise of 0.2% ($9.5m) in May 2025. Seasonally adjusted through-the-year sales are up 13.0% ($542.1m).
Original online sales rose 5.6% ($246.6m) in June 2025 compared to a fall of 1.5% (-$555.2m) in original total sales.
Total online, original and seasonally adjusted
In June 2025, food online sales were $1,449.9m and non-food online sales were $3,253.9m, in seasonally adjusted terms. Food sales rose 2.5% ($35.0m), and non-food rose 4.5% ($140.5m), seasonally adjusted.
Online sales, Food and Non-Food, seasonally adjusted
In original terms, the proportion of online food retailing sales to total food retailing rose from 6.9% to 7.2%. The proportion for online non-food retailing sales to total non-food retailing rose from 17.9% to 19.0%.
In original terms, the proportion of online sales to total retailing rose from 11.9% to 12.7%. This compares to 11.6% in June 2024.
Proportion of industry group turnover online, original
Additional notes regarding the online sales series can be found in the Methodology.
Quarterly retail turnover
Quarterly turnover, in volume terms - seasonally adjusted estimate
Per capita retail volumes
Retail volumes on a per capita basis fell 0.1% (-$2.1), following a fall last quarter of 0.4% (-$14.8) after having increased 0.4% ($16.6) in December quarter 2024. The rise in the December quarter 2024 is the the only per capita rise over the past three years. The fall this quarter now sees retail spending on a per person basis down 0.1% (-$4.2) compared to this time last year.
Having peaked in the June quarter 2022, retail volumes per capita are down 6.0% (-$244.7) since the peak, but remains up 3.2% ($118.4) compared to the December quarter 2019, the last quarter prior to the pandemic-period.
Retail turnover per capita, in volume terms - level
