Singapore retail sales growth accelerated in April albeit at a slower than expected pace, data published by the Department of Statistics showed Monday.
Retail sales grew 5 percent in April from last year, faster than the 1.9 percent expansion seen in March. Nonetheless, it was slower than a 6 percent rise forecast by economists.
The annual growth was driven by a significant 56.4 percent increase in motor vehicle sales. Excluding motor vehicles, sales were down 0.7 percent.
Department store sales advanced 3.4 percent, while supermarket sales dropped 0.5 percent. At the same time, food and beverages sales dropped 7 percent.
Meanwhile, monthly growth in retail sales slowed to 0.8 percent in April from 1 percent a month ago. Sales were expected to rise 1.2 percent. Motor vehicle sales gained only 0.7 percent from March.
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