Myer, Australia Stocks Fall on Weak Retail Sales

Stocks in Australia edged lower after weaker than expected retail sales and a weak global markets sentiment. Australia’s retail sales fell 0.7% and home sales rose 3.1% in December. Myer Holdings, the recently listed retailer said first half sales revenue rose 2.1%. 3:00 AM New York, 7:00 PM Sydney – Stocks in Australia edged lower after weaker than expected retail sales and a weak global markets sentiment. Australia’s retail sales fell 0.7% and home sales rose 3.1% in December. Myer Holdings, the recently listed retailer said first half sales revenue rose 2.1%. Stocks in Australia declined 0.6% dragged by a government report showing retail sales decreased in December. Myer Holdings, the retailer results also disappointed investors. Losses were however pared by increasing home sales in the month. In Sydney trading ASX 200 Index fell 0.6% or 26.3 to 4,621.60. Of the ASX 200 index stocks, 69 gained, 117 dropped, and 14 were unchanged. Platinum Australia led gainers in the index shares with a rise of 4.4% followed by Extract Resources rising a similar 4.4%. The Australian dollar declined 0.4% to 87.91 US cents. Retail Sales Fall 0.7% in December Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that the country’s retail sales fell 0.7% in December from a 1.5% increase a month earlier. Retail sales at department stores dropped 3.5%; clothing, footwear & other personal accessory retailing declined 1.9%; food retailer fell 1.3% and household goods retailing decreased 0.3%. However sales increased in cafes, restaurants & takeaway food services 2.5%, but other retailing was unchanged. Sales also fell in South Australia 3.7%, Tasmania 2.0%, Victoria 1.0%, Queensland 0.6%, the Northern Territory 0.4%, the Australian Capital Territory 0.4% and Western Australia 0.1%. New South Wales rose 0.1%. In seasonally adjusted volume terms, retail turnover rose 1.1% in the quarter ending in December from a drop of 0.7% in the September quarter. Home Sales Rise 3.1% in December Separately, the online edition reported that the number of approvals for private sector houses increased 3.1% in December from a month ago. House approvals in Victoria increased 4.6%, in Queensland 2.2% South Australia 0.5% and Western Australian 3.3%. In addition, the number of dwellings approved in Australia increased 2.2%, in Tasmania advanced 21.7% and Victoria jumped11.1%. Approvals for private sector dwellings other than houses soared 9.1%. The value of total building approved fell 3.7% in December as non-residential building approvals fell 9.4%. The value of approved new residential buildings increased 3%. Source:123jump.com/