Territorians splashed nearly $300m on retail pleasures in July as spending bounces back slightly

TERRITORIANS splashed nearly $300 million on everything from eating out at restaurants and cafes to new pairs of shoes in July as retail spending surged 3.1 per cent

TERRITORIANS splashed nearly $300 million on everything from eating out at restaurants and cafes to new pairs of shoes in July as retail spending surged 3.1 per cent.

But NT’s peak hospitality body has warned the July surge is likely to taper off in August and even further in September as the wet season sets in.

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New Australian Bureau of Statistics data reveal retail turnover nationally increased by 3.2 per cent and 3.1 per cent in the NT on seasonally adjusted terms.

In the Territory, this was a jump from $273.7 million in June to $282.2 million in July.

Hospitality NT boss Alex Bruce said food business owners had reported a satisfactory July in the circumstances.

ABS statistics show Territorians $34.3 million on eating and drinking out in July compared to just $28 million in June.

But this remains the second lowest spend since at least 2015 and is far below what is normally expected during a regular dry season where people are allowed to travel freely into the Territory from overseas or interstate.

Mr Bruce said the uptick in July for the hospitality sector had a lot to do with stimulus measures like the myDarwin vouchers and tourism vouchers.

ABS quarterly economy wide surveys director Ben James said nationally, retail sales in July 2020 were 12.0 per cent above July 2019, with sales in household goods particularly strong.

“Turnover in clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (7.1 per cent) and cafes, restaurants, and takeaway food services (4.9 per cent) rose across the country, with the exception of Victoria, where the reintroduction of Stage 3 stay-at-home restrictions in July partially offset these rises. As was the case in April, restrictions led to significant falls in these industries in Victoria,” he said.