Aust, retail sales drop

Press, 19 May 1984, Page 20

Aust, retail sales drop

NZPA-AAP Canberra Retailers have cast doubt on the strength of Australia’s economic recovery after the release of new figures showing a drop in retail sales in March.

Monthly retail sales in Australia in March fell 1 per cent compared with February, when the drop was 0.9 per cent, according to the Bureau of Statistics.

Seasonally adjusted figures show that sales increased by only 1.1 per cent in the first three months of this year compared with the previous quarter. This represented a fall in real terms because the Consumer Price Index increased by 1.2 per cent in the March quarter.

In Sydney, the Federal Employment and Industrial Relations Minister, Mr Ralph Willis, has said fears that the economy will not continue to grow are illinformed.

He painted an optimistic picture for the economy in 1984-85 in a speech to the Sydney Chamber of Commerce.

“The alarm expressed by some that private investment has not begun to grow again is ill-informed. Conditions are in place for renewed growth,” Mr Willis said.

He said labour costs had fallen sharply over the last 12 months and this had led to a strong pick-up in business profits.