The Australian retail sector is poised to hit $300 billion in revenue this financial year, says research conducted by the National Retail Association (NRA).
The NRA’s new quarterly index, ‘Retail Connect,’ found that based on a modest 4.6 per cent growth projection, the industry will generate sales of $299.2 billion dollars in 2015/16. If the 4.8 per cent growth achieved last year is repeated, sales will top the $300 billion barrier for the first time.
The NRA says that Christmas and Boxing Day spending could contribute to record breaking growth in the country’s retail industry.
“All indications were that the industry was continuing to experience the solid growth enjoyed in 2014/15, particularly after one of the busiest Christmas and Boxing Day trading periods in recent years – a period in which the number of people employed in the retail sector reached a record high,” said NRA chief executive officer, Trevor Evans.
Evans added that “there’s every reason to believe that, barring sudden external shocks to the Australian economy, that retail should become a $300 billion industry this financial year.”
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