Retail sales up 79.7% to $3.3b in May

However, this is still below pre-COVID levels.

Retail sales increased by 79.7% in May, at $3.3 billion, according to the latest government data.

Excluding motor vehicles, retail sales were up 61.6%, or $2.8 billion.

Online sales made up 13.7% of the sales recorded for the month. Broken down, 54.4% of online sales were for computer and telecommunications equipment, 30.7% for furniture and household equipment, and 12.1% for supermarkets and hypermarkets.

All retail industries except for supermarkets, hypermarkets, mini-marts, and convenience stores, recorded year-on-year increases. This was attributed to the low base in May 2020, when Circuit Breaker measures were in full effect, and physical stores were closed for the month.

Retail sales, however, are still below pre-COVID levels.

Watches and jewelry again posted a massive sales growth at 2090%, followed by department stores with a 513.0% increase in sales, wearing apparel and footwear with 447.1%, optical goods and books with 296.5%, and recreational goods with 219.7%.

Sales in the supermarkets and hypermarkets industry contracted by 12.1% whilst mini-marts and convenience stores contracted by 9.2%.

Month-on-month, retail sales declined by -6.8% compared to April, due to the implementation of Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) on May 16.