Australian retailers posted their weakest quarter in seven years in March in a b...
SYDNEY - Australian retailers posted their weakest quarter in seven years in March in a bad omen for the broader economy as the country’s central bank deliberates on whether or not to cut interest rates later on Tuesday.
Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed retail sales rose a tepid 0.3 percent in March compared with an upwardly revised 0.9 percent in February and forecasts for a 0.2 percent gain in a Reuters poll. The soft result implies retail sales did not contribute to growth in Australia’s A$1.9 trillion economy in the March quarter. It also adds to growing evidence of a rocky outlook, given household spending accounts for around 57 percent of annual gross domestic product.
Calls from some analysts for the RBA to ease policy at its May meeting intensified after first-quarter inflation came in below expectations to undershoot the central bank’s 2-3 percent target for 13 straight quarters.
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