ABS data shows signs of slowdown for food sector

Trend data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS) indicates a weakening in the food sector, with year-on-year sales growth dropping to below 3% in August.

Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) CEO Gary Dawson said, “We are currently seeing weaker food price inflation domestically because of a range of factors including below average income growth over the past three years and a slowing in population growth.

“However, at the same time, the lower Australian dollar has seen a 28% surge in Australia’s food and beverage exports in 2014–15, as reported in our annual industry snapshot State of the Industry 2015, underpinning growth in the food and grocery sector despite challenging economic conditions.”

The AFGC CHEP Retail Index indicates a slowing in trade growth in the lead-up to Christmas, with year-on-year retail trade growth expected to soften to 3.6% in the December quarter, down from 4.2% in the September quarter.

The AFGC CHEP Retail Index is a collaborative project between the Australian Food and Grocery Council and CHEP Australia. The Index uses CHEP transactional data based on pallet movements and is a lead indicator of Australian Bureau of Statistics Retail Trade Data.