Australian retail turnover declined 0.1% month-on-month in April 2025, according to seasonally adjusted figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The reading fell short of market expectations for a 0.3% rise.
"Retail spending eased in April, particularly on clothing purchases," said Robert Ewing, ABS head of business statistics. "Falls were partly offset by a bounce-back in Queensland as businesses recovered from the negative impacts of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred last month."
Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing saw the steepest decline, dropping 2.5%.
Within this category, clothing retailing fell 3.2%, and footwear and personal accessories slipped 0.9%. Department stores also recorded a 2.5% fall.
“Clothing retailers told us that the warmer-than-usual weather for an April month saw people holding off on buying clothing items, especially new winter season stock,” Ewing added.
Food retailing fell 0.3%, led by a 0.7% drop in supermarket and grocery store sales. Liquor retailing rose 1.4%, while other specialised food retailing increased 2.0%.
In contrast, household goods retailing rose 0.6%, buoyed by a 0.9% increase in electrical and electronic goods retailing, a 0.5% rise in furniture and homewares, and a 0.3% lift in hardware and garden supplies.
Other retailing grew 0.7%, including gains in pharmaceutical and cosmetic goods, recreational goods, and book and newspaper retailing.
Online retailing remained resilient, with seasonally adjusted sales rising 0.6% in April to $4.54 billion, following a 0.5% increase in March.
Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services continued to recover, rising 1.1%. Takeaway food rose 2.1%, and cafes and restaurants increased 0.5%.
“The rise in food-related spending was driven by more dining out in Queensland this month. The bounce-back comes after adverse weather negatively impacted cafe and restaurant sales,” Ewing said.
Queensland posted the strongest growth in retail turnover, up 1.4%, while Western Australia rose 0.4%.
“Queensland retailers recovered from last month’s temporary business closures and fewer customers,” said Ewing.
“In April, we saw higher spending in the industries most impacted by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. More people dined out and made recovery purchases on household items like furniture and electrical goods.”
All other states and territories recorded a decline in turnover, following growth in March.
