New Zealand Q3 Retail Sales Spike 28.0%

On a yearly basis, retail sales volume advanced 8.3 percent after sinking 14.2 percent in the three months prior.

By volume, 12 of the 15 industries saw higher sales volumes on a yearly basis.

By industry, the main movements were: electrical and electronic goods retailing, up 28 percent; motor vehicle and parts retailing, up 14 percent; hardware, building, and garden supplies, up 14 percent; supermarket and grocery stores, up 4.7 percent; department stores, up 12 percent; and recreational goods retailing, up 17 percent.

Food and beverage services had the largest fall, down 6.2 percent, followed by accommodation, down 8.1 percent.

The value of retail sales was up 7.4 percent on year in Q3, with 14 of the 16 regions showing higher sales values.

"A strong September quarter has contributed to the year-ended sales coming in just shy of last year's value," retail statistics manager Sue Chapman said.

The total value of stock held was NZ$8.0 billion, down 4.7 percent (NZ$394 million), compared with a year earlier. Ten of the 15 retail industries recorded falls in stock in September 2020 compared with September 2019.

The largest fall came from motor vehicles and parts retailing, down 11 percent (NZ$203 million), followed by department stores, down 8.3 percent (NZ$89 million).

The largest increase came from liquor retailing, up 14 percent (NZ$32 million).