Retail turnover in November rose to $39.1 billion, up 7% from November 2024, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
There were strong year-on-year gains across most major categories and states, with the biggest increases reserved for well-established Christmas gift categories.
Highlights include:
- Household goods retailing (up 10.1%).
- Other retailing (up 9.2%).
- Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services (up 9.2%).
- Clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (up 8.9%).
- Food retailing (up 3.8%).
Major states also delivered solid growth, with Western Australia (up 8.9%), Queensland (up 7.9%) and NSW (up 7%) leading the gains.
Australian Retailers Association (ARA) CEO Chris Rodwell says the month’s performance underlines a fundamental shift in consumer behaviour around the peak season trading period.
“November has become a critical peak trading month in its own right,” he says. “We’re seeing strong demand across discretionary and essential categories well before mid-December – year after year this trend is becoming more entrenched.”
The ABS figures align with recent ARA research showing Australians are starting their Christmas shopping earlier. ARA data shows that nearly one-in-three surveyed shoppers are beginning Christmas purchases earlier than they did in 2024, with deal-driven events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday becoming core moments in peak-season retail calendars.
Mr Rodwell says Black Friday and early-season promotions are now firmly embedded in the shopping cycle.
“What used to be a once-off mid-December rush is now a sustained, earlier, deal-sensitive shopping season,” he says.
