Singapore’s retail sales make new record drop in May
Singapore’s total retail sales decreased by 52.1 percent in May – the highest decrease since 1986, the country’s Department of Statistics released on July 3.
A shopping mall in Singapore (Source: straitstimes.com)
Singapore (VNA) – Singapore’s total retail sales decreased by 52.1percent in May – the highest decrease since 1986, the country’s Department of Statisticsreleased on July 3.
The drop in May, which beat April’s previous record of 40.3percent, marked the 16th consecutive month Singapore’s retail sales haveexperienced decreases.
Like in April, only two categories of retail sales sawgrowth in May. With essential services remaining open, sales at supermarketsand hypermarkets rose 56.1 percent, while those of minimarts and conveniencestores rose 9.1 percent.
Sellers of discretionary items were again hit hardest by the forced closure,with sales of watches and jewellery plunging 96.9 percent. Department storesales sank 93.4 percent while shops selling clothes and footwear saw takingsdrop 89.1 percent.
May, however, is likely to be the worst month forretailers, with sales set to begin recovering as Singapore's partial lockdownbegan gradually lifting on June 2./.
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The Ministry of Commerce reported that imports also rose 18% to 29.9 billion USD during the same period, resulting in a trade surplus of 1.1 billion USD. In May alone, Thailand posted a 4.6 billion USD trade surplus with the US and a 4.1 billion USD trade deficit with China.
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A shopping mall in Singapore (Source: straitstimes.com) 
