The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed our retail sales forecasts for 2026. We addressed the outlook for the Australian retail sector in 2026 and beyond. The sector had a strong finish to 2025 but the outlook is more hazy with risks to both sales momentum and gross margins emerging. 

The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed our retail sales forecasts for FY26. We addressed the crucial time for retailers that is the festive season and how trends may shift across retail categories. While the macro-economic backdrop is conducive, what will it take to see stronger sales growth?  

We have made modest revisions to our retail sales forecasts. For FY26e, we forecast retail sales growth of 4.0% (prev 3.9%) and for FY27e 4.1% growth (unchanged). Non-food retail spending has been solid in the past six months and the trends are likely to continue into Christmas this year. However, we may see some shift in category performance in the new year as household goods slow, while fashion and takeaway food sales improve. Our upswing in retail sales is muted, which is a function of slowing household income growth and a low savings rates. We continue to monitor house prices closely as a source of upside risk if the wealth effect stimulates the use of previously stored-up savings.

The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed our retail sales forecasts for FY26e. The outlook remains constructive for retail spending in FY26e, interest rates are falling and tax cuts are providing stimulus for households, but population growth is slowing and income growth may not rise further from here. We assessed the willingness of consumers to dip into savings to drive retail spending higher.  

This is a chart pack from our webinar presentation following our April 2025 updated retail forecasts. The chart pack addresses the retail sales outlook, household income growth and savings. We also address the topical issues of US tariffs, the Australian dollar and wage rate growth. The presentation pack has a link to the webinar recording.

Australian inflation for the December 2024 quarter shows an easing of inflation across retail categories as well as the underlying rate of inflation across the economy. The drop in inflation in food retail is a headwind to sales growth that is likely to persist in 2025 in our view. In non-food retail we have seen a drop in inflation in hardware, electronics and clothing. A further easing of inflation may not eventuate given the lower Australian dollar. Financial markets are increasingly pricing a 25bp rate cut for February 2025, which will be supportive of retail. The bigger issue for us is the overall rate cutting cycle may be shallow and therefore offer only mild stimulus to retail sales. We see lower interest rates boosting retail sales by 0.5% to 1.5%.

The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed our retail sales forecasts for 2025. In the presentation, we answered some of the big questions on everyone’s minds, the impact of interest rate cuts, how elections impact spending and the outlook for retail sales across categories.

The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed our updated outlook for retail sales and the drivers of a recovery in retail spending. In the presentation, we answer the question of whether consumers will spend or save their income growth, quantifying the impact of rate cuts and tax cuts, which retail categories we expect to outperform in FY25e, and a comparison of Australia with offshore markets.

The link provides a presentation associated with a webinar we held. The webinar addressed the updated outlook for retail sales and key drivers that could trigger an improvement in spending. In the presentation, we provide an update on the outlook for retail sales, covering feedback on recent trading and expectations for FY25e. We will address which categories have the best potential for volume recovery and how they are navigating price disinflation. We will also address the risk from interest rates on retail. The presentation also includes insights about retailer profitability, inventory levels, and expectations for retail trading at the FY24e results in August.

Australian retail has had a challenging 12 months. We expect we are past the worst for this sales cycle with a gradual improvement in growth over the next 12 months. We forecast retail sales growth of 2.9% in FY25e, up from 1.8% in FY24e. The sectors likely to see the strongest recovery are household goods, supermarkets and online. Some categories are still vulnerable to a correction in volumes such as liquor, cafes & restaurants and fashion. While there is an upswing, it will be mild and leave growth rates below trend for the next three years in our view given the low household savings rate and decelerating population growth.