Despite what Harvey Norman’s financials may suggest, Australians spent up big in January, with retail turnover rising 1.9 per cent, following a 4 per cent fall in December.

This is according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Total sales for the month were over $35 billion.

Department stores jumped 8.8 per cent during the month, the biggest sector leap. This was followed by clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (6.5 per cent), other retailing (2.9 per cent), cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services (1.2 per cent), and household goods retailing (1.1 per cent).

“The rebound in retail turnover in January followed a substantial fall of 4.0 per cent in December and a large rise of 1.7 per cent in November,” Ben Dorber, ABS head of retail statistics, said of the rocky landscape.

“Looking through this volatility shows that turnover is at a similar level to September 2022, and on average, growth has been flat over the past few months.

“November, December and January are the most seasonal months of the year, with retail activity heavily affected by the Christmas period and January holidays.

“This has been heightened by an increase in the popularity of Black Friday sales and growing cost of living pressures combining to drive a change in usual consumer spending patterns.”