Online sales growth slowed to +14% yoy in June – the second slowest rate recorded. Fewer Fridays and a lack of product launches may have contributed to subdued growth.

• In the twelve months to June 2013, Australian online retail spending totalled $13.9 billion. This spending is equivalent to 6.2% of the traditional bricks & mortar retail sector (excluding cafés, restaurants and takeaway food for a like-to-like comparison) in the year to May 2013.
• The NAB Online Retail Sales Index eased back slightly in June – back to 223 points (from 226 points in May).
• The growth rate for online retail sales slowed for the second straight month in June – with the year-on-year rate down to +14% (compared with +17% yoy in May). This is the second weakest growth rate in the history of the index, stronger only than the +12% yoy growth in March 2013.
• Traditional bricks & mortar retail grew by +2.8% year-on-year in May 2013 (on a non-seasonally adjusted basis), marginally stronger than the level in April, +2.4% yoy. However, when seasonal factors are included, the growth trend for traditional retail eased back to +2.4% yoy (from +2.6% yoy in May).
• The slowing rate of growth in June may be related to two key factors. First, June 2013 had only four Fridays – typically a peak day for online sales – compared with five Fridays in June 2012. Second, June 2012 featured several major product launches in the Homewares and Appliances space (particularly in personal computing and mobile phones) – which tend to inflate sales – while June 2013 lacked similar releases, contributing to more subdued growth.

For further analysis download the full report.

• Online Retail Sales Index monthly update – June 2013 (PDF 66 KB)