The food and beverage sector, which has been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, is expecting a rebound in the second half of this year as restrictions ease and more consumers feel comfortable going out, an industry source said.
With more people expected to spend money in department stores, food and beverage sales for this month are forecast to return to the same level as June last year, Retailers Association of Chinese Taipei secretary-general Steve Chan (詹武哲) said on Sunday.
Chan said that months of declining food and beverage sales are expected to turn around in the coming six months, as COVID-19 has been contained in Taiwan and the government would next month implement stimulus measures, such as the Executive Yuan’s Triple Stimulus Voucher program.
The rebound in consumer confidence might have already been evident last month, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said.
Department of Statistics Deputy Director-General Wang Shu-chuan (王淑娟) said that the annual decline in food and beverage sales last month might have fallen to less than 20 percent at about 8 to 15 percent.
Revenue in the sector in February, March and April was down 17 percent, 21 percent and 22.8 percent year-on-year respectively, ministry statistics showed.
The sector’s sales in April totaled NT$47.9 billion (US$1.61 billion), the lowest since December 2014, and the 22.8 percent fall from a year earlier was the steepest drop in 20 years, ministry data showed.
The ministry on Tuesday next week is to release food and beverage sales data for last month.
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