Queenslanders’ need for new household goods following the natural disasters of late December and January have contributed to a moderate incrreaes in retail figures released today, Australian National Retailers Association (ANRA) CEO Margy Osmond said.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics today released retail trade figures showing 0.5% growth in the sector.

“For most of the past six months Australians have been telling us they will put off purchasing major household items, but in Queensland it’s been a needs must situation – and there has been a 6% spike in Queensland household goods retailing, the highest in more than two years.

“Despite the figure looking good on the surface, the details show us a jumble of numbers which only tell us how confused the market place is at the moment. Department stores have dropped 0.4% after the end of the January sales, while clothing leapt up 0.9%.

“The figures are see-sawing with food up in January, flat in February and hospitality going from a -0.4% figure at the start of the year, to a 0.3% growth it’s definitely a case of what was up is now down and vice versa. It’s a challenging space. We do know that without that big lift from household good spending, the figures would have looked quite different.

“While retailers will be cautiously optimistic looking at the data, the sector is still walking on egg shells and there is little confidence recovery will come much before the last quarter of 2011,” Mrs Osmond said.

She said clothing may have gone up with the weather settling down and new seasons stock coming in to tempt the fashion-conscious.

“We know the fashion brands have been walking a difficult road in recent months, so this turn around should warm their hearts. However, I’ll be waiting for a few more months of numbers at trend (0.5%) and above before I’m willing to say the sector is in recovery.

“Retailers will continue to work hard to get customers in the stores and buying again and not just because they need to replace the lounge,” she said.