expected -0.3%, prior +1.4% (November benefitted from Black Friday sales)
the -3.9% m/m is the first fall after 11 consecutive months of rises
apart from the pandemic and the introduction of sales tax (GST) this is the worst month ever
The Australian Bureau of Statistics notes a pull-forward of activity to the Black Friday sales:
“The large fall in December suggests that retail spending is slowing due to high cost-of-living pressures. Retail businesses reported that many consumers had responded to these pressures by doing more Christmas shopping in November to take advantage of heavy promotional activity and discounting as part of the Black Friday sales event.”
