The wholesale sector saw sales decrease 12.6 percent year-on-year last month due to the impact of the Lunar New Year holiday, while the retail and food and beverage sectors posted increases of 2.5 percent and 17.5 percent respectively, the Ministry of Economic Affairs reported on Monday.
With sales declining across the board, wholesale revenue dropped to NT$812.1 billion (US$26.71 million), the ministry said.
Machinery equipment, the sector’s biggest industry, saw sales all 11.2 percent to NT$299.9 billion, the lowest since February last year, as global trade slowed due to the US- China trade dispute, it said.
While fewer working days were mainly to blame for the wholesale sector’s decline last month, they in turn boosted sales in the retail sector, which grew to NT$357.3 billion, Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Wang Shu-chuan (王淑娟) said.
“Sales of general merchandise, which include sales from department stores, supermarkets and convenience stores, increased 13.4 percent year-on-year to NT$122.4 billion last month, thanks to holiday promotions,” Wang said, adding that clothing retailers said sales surged 15.2 percent to NT$31.3 billion.
The COVID-19 outbreak bolstered sales for e-commerce and catalog operators, as people made more purchases online, Wang said, with revenue growing 3.1 percent to NT$19.2 billion.
However, as the outbreak spreads, it is expected to deal a blow to the retail sector this month, as consumers continue to stay indoors, Wang said.
“We expect the retail sector to contract 4.5 percent on an annual basis, which would translate into a fall of NT$12.5 billion,” Wang said.
The wholesale sector is expected to post an annual decline of 8.18 percent, or NT$52.5 billion.
Meanwhile, food and beverage sector revenue hit a new high of NT$82.7 billion last month, thanks to year-end banquets and reunion dinners, but Wang warned that consumers are less inclined to eat out amid the outbreak.
The sector is expected to see sales fall by NT$6.1 billion to NT$64.2 billion this month, compared with NT$70.3 billion a year earlier, the ministry said.
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