New evidence based on National Australia Bank Online Retail Index for June 2012 shows that Australian consumers are in fact spending.
The Index recorded a 19 per cent year-on-year lift in online sales growth, indicating a recovery in the month.
This represents a significant strengthening compared with the previous two months of 14 per cent 15 per cent in in May and April respectively.
According to NAB, Quantium’s analysis suggests the traditional mid-year period of toy sales at Australian discount department stores appears in the online sector, with a notable pick up in sales for these stores during June.
Australia’s total online spending was around $11.5 billion in the year ended June 2012. This level is equivalent to 5.3 per cent of traditional bricks and mortar retail spending (excluding cafés, restaurants and takeaway food) for the year ended May 2012.
In June 2012, the NAB Online Retail Sales Index rose to 189 points – up marginally from 187 points in May 2012.
“Online sales growth remains considerably stronger than traditional retail bricks & mortar retail – which saw a rebound in growth in May, up from 0.2 per cent to 4.2 per cent year-on-year on a non-seasonally adjusted basis. After seasonal adjustment, the growth rate was more modest, at 2.8 per cent year-on-year compared with 1.7 per cent in April,” NAB reported.
Despite this recovery, the growth rate for online retail sales remains considerably lower than the levels from a year earlier of 32 per cent year-on-year in June 2011.