Australian retail sales rose 5.5% in January 2026, a slight softening on recent trends, but still highlighting a strong consumer. Café, takeaway and restaurant sales rose 9.3%, clothing and footwear was up 6.5%. Once again supermarkets and liquor were the laggard at 3.5% growth. The reality is that sales growth momentum is likely to slow, but the January 2026 update is a reminder that the slowdown is likely to be gradual over the next six months.

Australian retail sales rose 4.7% year-on-year for December 2025. This was a solid end to the year and the December quarter showed growth of 5.8%, which was above trend. It is important to call out the strength of non-food, which was 7.1% across the December quarter, an unusually strong result. We believe we have just seen the peak in retail sales growth, with a gradual slowdown over 2026 likely.

Australian retail sales rose 6.9% year-on-year in November 2025 according to ABS data. The shift of ABS data source does makes us cautious about the magnitude of the reported strength in sales. Even so, it does suggest another strong month in non-food. Household goods such as furniture, electronics and hardware, had the strongest growth up 10.6%. At-home food and liquor was weakest at 3.6% growth.