Local restaurants saw a 5.5 per cent increase in receipts month-on-month in May, while retailers also recorded a month-on-month sales rise of 5.3 per cent, according to the latest data published by the Statistics and Census Service on Friday.
When compared to May 2023, the receipts of the respondents declined by 5.9 per cent in May 2024. Meanwhile, the sales of the surveyed retailers slipped by 25.9 per cent year-on-year.
As regards the business expectations for June, 38 per cent of the respondents forecast a month-on-month fall in receipts, and only 10 per cent of the interviewed predicted a receipts increase.
For the retail trade sector, 35 per cent of the interviewed retailers expected a month-on-month sales drop in June, while around 19 per cent anticipated sales growth in June.
The Business Outlook Index (BOI) that reflects the trend of month-on-month changes in receipts anticipated by the interviewed establishments was lower than 50 both for restaurants and retailers, indicating a less favourable business outlook month-on-month.
