Sales in Taiwan department stores rise to monthly record in October

Taipei, Nov. 24 (CNA) Department stores in Taiwan registered record sales in October, driven by promotional campaigns and the extended National Day holiday, which also pushed up the revenue in the retail sector, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

Data released Thursday by the MOEA showed that the October sales for department chain stores in Taiwan totaled NT$49.1 billion (US$1.56 billion), recording a monthly high and a 4.4 percent increase from a year earlier.

Overall, the retail sector reported sales of NT$400.0 billion, the highest ever for the month of October and a 5.1 percent rise from a year earlier, the MOEA data showed.

Supermarkets benefited from an increase in the number of outlets, posting NT$22.2 billion in sales in October, up 2.7 percent from a year earlier, while convenience store chains posted NT$35.0 billion in revenue, up 7.6 percent year-on-year, the data indicated.

Hypermarkets, however, failed to ride the upturn in October, registering a 6.0 percent decline in sales from a year earlier to NT$19.1 billion, due to weak demand, according to the MOEA.

In the vehicle sector, car and motorbike sales totaled NT$65.2 billion in October, up 12.7 percent from a year earlier, the data showed. The hike largely reflected increased supplies and the debut of new models, which boosted buying, Huang Wei-jie (黃偉傑), deputy head of MOEA's Department of Statistics, told reporters.

In the first 10 months of the year, retail sales rose 7.5 percent from a year earlier to NT$3.76 trillion on solid domestic demand in the post COVID-19 era, the MOEA data showed.

In October, sales in the food and beverage sector soared 11.1 percent from a year earlier to NT$85.5 billion, the data indicated. Revenue generated by restaurants jumped 10.5 percent from a year earlier to NT$71.4 billion, while beverage vendors recorded a 7.1 percent year-on-year increase to NT$9.8 billion, with both segments recording a new high for October, according to the MOEA.

Huang said anniversary promotions by department stores, along with the four-day National Day holiday, also helped drive sales in the food and beverage sector in October.

In that sector, catering service sales soared 35.1 percent from a year earlier to NT$4.3 billion in October, boosted partly by higher demand among enterprise clients, the MOEA said.

In the first 10 months of the year, revenue generated by the food and beverage sector rose 21.3 percent from a year earlier to NT$852.3 billion, the MOEA data showed.

The wholesale sector, meanwhile, saw a 0.9 percent sales decline to NT$1.06 trillion in October from a year earlier, which represented some recovery after a 3.6 percent year-on-year drop in September, as artificial intelligence development boosted demand for machinery equipment helped to offset the overall weak global demand, according to the MOEA.

Sales of machinery equipment in Taiwan rose 2.2 percent in October from a year earlier to NT$497.6 billion, stopping an 11-month falling streak, amid growing demand for AI applications, Huang said.

Taiwan's wholesale industry, meanwhile, saw an 8.9 percent year-on-year decline in revenue in the first 10 months of the year, dropping to NT$9.70 trillion, according to the MOEA.

The local wholesale sector is expected to return to a growth pattern in November, however, as inventory adjustments peter out, Huang said, forecasting sales of NT$1.01 trillion to NT$1.04 trillion, which would be an increase of 0.9-3.9 percent from a year earlier.

He also forecast a cap on retail sales growth at 2.2-5.2 percent in November, citing a relatively high comparison base over the same period of last year. He estimated that revenue in the food and beverage sector will continue to show growth in November, rising 7.6-10.6 percent from a year earlier.