Retail sales in Australia rose in May to 0.4% on a monthly basis, according to data released this morning by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, to come better than expectations, which indicated an increase of 0.1%, while the index rose by 7.7% at an annual pace compared to May of last year.
In details, the retail trade in foodstuffs rose by about 1.1%, or 141.4 million dollars, in May, while the retail trade of clothing declined by 0.4%, by 7.3 million dollars.
On the other hand, building permits in Australia for approved homes fell by 7.1% in May, less than expectations that indicated a decline to 5%, while private sector housing fell to 10.3%.
The Australian dollar is trading at 0.7530 levels against the US dollar, with a slight rise ahead of the Australian Central Bank’s meeting tomorrow morning, Tuesday, in the Asian session.