Sales in the retail sector last month increased 1.8 percent from a year earlier to NT$438.1 billion (US$13.41 billion), a record high, reversing an annual decrease of 0.5 percent in the previous month, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Monday.
The ministry attributed the improvement in retail sales to the effects of anniversary sale events, the Double 11 Singles’ Day online shopping festival, store expansions, new product launches and special promotions associated with Taiwan’s victory in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s Premier12 tournament.
They collectively led to annual increases of 6 percent in sales at convenience stores, 9.4 percent at supermarkets, 7.4 percent at hypermarkets, 3.1 percent at department stores, 5.2 percent at cosmetics outlets, 3.3 percent at household appliance stores and 2.1 percent at apparel shops, it said.
Photo: CNA
That helped offset a drop in sales at auto dealers, the ministry said, adding that sales of cars, motorcycles, auto parts and accessories decreased 4.1 percent last month.
Cumulative sales in the first 11 months of the year totaled NT$4.42 trillion, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier, marking the highest level for the same period on record, it said.
For this month, the ministry forecast retail sales to be NT$433.1 billion to NT$445.8 billion, representing growth of 2.9 percent to 5.9 percent on an annual basis.
It also forecast that retail sales for the whole of this year would increase by 2.6 percent to 2.8 percent to between NT$4.85 trillion and NT$4.86 trillion.
Meanwhile, sales in the food and beverage sector rose 7.2 percent year-on-year to NT$85.4 billion last month, compared with the 1.8 percent decline seen in the previous month, the ministry said.
The strong showing came as restaurants reported sales increased 7.6 percent and beverage stores’ sales grow 3.6 percent from a year earlier, after store operators launched special meals and promotions in conjunction with baseball games, while a drop in temperatures drove demand for warm food and beverages, the ministry said.
Steady demand for in-flight and group meals that resulted in a 9.7 percent sales increase in the catering business was also a factor behind the annual growth in food and beverage sales last month, it added.
In the first 11 months of the year, food and beverage sales rose 3.4 percent year-on-year to NT$941.2 billion, the highest ever for the same period, it said.
Sales this month are projected to climb 1 percent to 4 percent year-on-year to NT$92.8 billion to NT$95.6 billion, while the full-year sales are estimated to increase 3.2 percent to 3.5 percent to between NT$1.03 trillion and NT$1.04 trillion, it said.
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