Online Retail Sales Index monthly update – March 2013
Online sales growth slowed in March to +15% yoy, with sales possibly impacted by the absence of new flagship tablet release. In the twelve months ending March 2013, Australian online retail purchases were $13.3 billion.
Online sales growth slowed in March to +15% yoy, with sales possibly impacted by the absence of new flagship tablet releases.
- In the twelve months ending March 2013, Australian online retail purchases were $13.3 billion. This level is equivalent to around 6.0% of Australia’s traditional bricks & mortar retail sector (excluding cafés, restaurants and takeaway food for a like-to-like comparison) for the year to February 2013.
- The NAB Online Retail Sales Index picked up a little in March – moving up to 209 points (from 193 points in February). This improvement was comparatively modest, given a weak level of spending in February.
- Growth rates slowed significantly in March, with the year-on-year rate at just +15%. This growth rate was the second slowest recorded for our index (higher only than the +14% in May 2012). Since peaking in January at +27% yoy, growth trends for online retail have been much weaker.
- The rate of growth for traditional bricks & mortar retail was comparatively weak in February 2013 – at just +0.9% year-on-year on a non-seasonally adjusted basis (down from +4.3% yoy in January). That said, when seasonal factors are included, growth trends improved – from +3.1% yoy to +4.4% yoy.
- The slowing growth rate in March may have been influenced by the lack of product launches in the electronics space. Online sales were boosted in both March 2011 and March 2012 by flagship tablet releases, which did not occur this year. When these effects are removed from our data growth rates remained at similar levels to those recorded in February.
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About the Author
Gerard has over a decade of experience as a professional economist, currently specialising in international economic research. He is responsible for monitoring and forecasting trends in emerging Asian economies, with a particular emphasis on China. He is also a member of the bank’s commodities research team, focusing on trends in iron ore and coal markets.
Gerard joined NAB in 2005, and previously focused on risk analysis across a range of industry sectors in Australia and abroad. He had particular expertise in areas such as Mining, Manufacturing, Healthcare and Retail, including the development of research into online retail sales. Prior to joining NAB, he was an economist with the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics, focusing on commodities and energy research.
He holds Bachelors degrees in Economics (with Honours) and Commerce from the Australian National University.
