Singapore retail sales growth accelerates in July, propped by surge in motor vehicle sales

Data from Department of Statistics revealed that Singapore’s retail sales for July rose 2.8 percent y/y drive by a surge in motor vehicle sales. Singapore retail sales climbed 2.8 percent year-over-year in July, faster than the 1.3 percent rise in June, which was revised up from a 0.9 percent gain reported earlier.

The rise was better than the 1.4 percent rise expected by economists and was was largely driven by a 36.5 percent y/y surge in sales of motor vehicles. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales fell 3.0 percent in July from a year ago.

On a month-on-month basis, retail sales were up 1.4 per cent in July. Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales rose 3 per cent.  Economists had expected a 0.4 percent fall for the month.

The next best performing sector was medical goods and toiletries sector, which saw a 4.5 per cent increase. Sales of food and beverages dipped 7.5 percent in July, while sales at supermarkets went up by 0.3 percent.