Australian retail trade rose by just 0.2 per cent in June while building approvals fell 3.3 per cent in the same month.
Australian retail trade rose by just 0.2 per cent in June while building approvals fell 3.3 per cent in the same month.
The retail result was a little below market expectations while building approvals fell, rather than gained as expected.
"This data, unless it was extraordinarily different from expectations," said Nomura Australia chief economists Stephen Roberts said.
He said building approvals had been coming down on and off over the last few months while the June quarter retails sales result was "not too bad".
Australian retail trade rose to a seasonally adjusted $20.184 billion, from a downwardly revised $20.146 billion in May, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) said.
The Australian Retailers Association said the figure showed dismal growth for the second month in a row and reflected stories of poor trade from retailers across the country.
"When July results are posted next month we'll see how retailers fared during the first month of wage bill increases under the new retail award but we're already getting emails every day from retailers across the country saying this is one of the worst years of trade they can remember," said ARA executive director Russell Zimmerman.
"If business doesn't start to improve, small retailers who are already struggling to hold onto staff will have to start making employment cuts," he said.
Over the June quarter, retail sales rose by 0.8 per cent to $57.925 billion in seasonally adjusted volume terms.
The median market forecast was for retail sales to have risen by 0.4 per cent in the month and by 0.7 per cent in the quarter.
Retail sales in Western Australian remained flat.
Meanwhile, Australian building approvals fell 3.3 per cent to 13,267 units in June, seasonally adjusted, from an upwardly revised 13,721 units in May, according to ABS figures.
In the year to June, building approvals were up 13.2 per cent.
The median market forecast was for building approvals to have risen 1.5 per cent in the month.
Building approvals fell in three out of eight states and territories and were down in all six states over the June quarter.
Approvals increased by 1.4 per cent in Western Australia.
WA Housing Industry Association executive director John Dastlik said that the modest recovery in June was driven by solid growth in detached house approvals.
"Regardless of the modest rebound in June, the overall situation should spell a sustained period of steady interest rates. It also highlights the urgent need for further policy reform to reduce the obstacles to boosting Western Australia's new housing supply," said Mr Dastlik.
The number of seasonally adjusted detached house approvals was up by 4.8 per cent in June, but down 10 per cent in the June quarter.
The number of 'other dwelling' approvals fell by 19.8 per cent in June, and were down 55.3 per cent in the June 2010 quarter.
Building approvals increased in Victoria by 1.4 per cent and by 21.5 per cent in Tasmania.
In trend terms, approvals increased by 11 per cent in the Northern Territory and by 5.7 per cent in the Australian Capital Territory.
In the month of June the number of seasonally adjusted building approvals fell in New South Wales (-6.2 per cent), Queensland (-8.1 per cent), and South Australia (-25.4 per cent).
