Singapore's retail sales up 1.1 pct in March

SINGAPORE, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's retail sales rose 1.1 percent year-on-year in March, reversing a 3.5 percent decline in February, according to data released Monday by the Singapore Department of Statistics.

However, on a seasonally adjusted basis, retail sales fell 2.8 percent compared to the previous month.

Total retail sales in March were estimated at 4.3 billion Singapore dollars (approximately 3.31 billion U.S. dollars), with online sales making up 13.4 percent of the total, up from 12.3 percent in February.

Meanwhile, sales in the food and beverage services sector continued to weaken, falling 2.8 percent year-on-year in March after a 5.7 percent drop in February. The total sales value for the sector in March was estimated at 960 million Singapore dollars. (1 Singapore dollar equals 0.77 U.S. dollars) Enditem