XN000022-1989-06-01 — Page 32

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THURSDAY, JUNE 1, 1989

TABLE

1 PRESENTS THE REVISED TOTAL RETAIL SALES FOR FEBRUARY 1989 AND THE PROVISIONAL FIGURES FOR MARCH 1989.

IN TABLE 2 SHOWS THE VALUE AND VOLUME INDEXES OF RETAIL SALES FEBRUARY 1989 AND MARCH 1989 (A) FOR ALL RETAIL SALES, (B) BY MAJOR TRADE GROUPS AND

FORM PART (C) BY SELECTED TRADES (WHICH RELEVANT MAJOR TRADE GROUPS), WITH AVERAGE RETAIL SALES FROM 1984 TO SEPTEMBER 1985 TAKEN AS 100.

OF THE OCTOBER

1989 THE

COMPARISONS OF MARCH 1989 RESULTS WITH THOSE FOR FEBRUARY AND WITH THOSE FOR MARCH 1988, AND COMPARISONS OF RETAIL SALES IN

ARE ALSO PERIOD JANUARY TO MARCH 1989 WITH THE SAME PERIOD IN 1988, GIVEN.

GRAPHS 1 AND 2 DEPICT, RESPECTIVELY, THE MOVEMENTS OF THE VALUE MARCH AND VOLUME INDEXES OF TOTAL RETAIL SALES FROM SEPTEMBER 1986 TO 1989 AND THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED INDEXES AND TREND FOR SEPTEMBER TO FEBRUARY 1989.

1986

SALES TOTAL

AND IN JANUARY SIGNIFICANTLY

FALLS.

USUALLY

OR

IN

OF AS SHOWN IN GRAPH 1, THE VALUE INDEX

CHRISTMAS RISE SUBSTANTIALLY IN DECEMBER DUE TO FEBRUARY DUE TO THE LUNAR NEW YEAR, BUT DROPPED THE

FOLLOWING

YEAR THAT IN WHICH THE LUNAR NEW

MONTH

THE

SEASONALLY

ADJUSTED SALES VALUE

INDEX AND TREND HAVE GENERALLY FOLLOWED A SMOOTHER UPWARD COURSE OVER THE YEARS.

THE VOLUME INDEX OF TOTAL RETAIL SALES, AS DEPICTED IN GRAPH 2, VALUE INDEX. SHOWS A PATTERN OF MOVEMENTS SIMILAR TO THAT OF THE

TREND HOWEVER, THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED SALES VOLUME INDEX AND

AND TREND FOR RISE MORE SLOWLY THAN THE SEASONALLY ADJUSTED INDEX SALES VALUE, MAINLY DUE TO THE EFFECT OF PRICE INCREASES.

THE REPORT CONTAINING THE ANALYSIS OF MARCH 1989 SURVEY RESULTS IS NOW ON SALE AT THE GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS CENTRE, CONNAUGHT PLACE,

CENTRAL, AT $1 PER COPY.

AND

ABOUT ENQUIRIES

THE

DIRECTED SURVEY RESULTS MAY BE

OF WHOLESALE

RETAIL TRADE STATISTICS SECTION STATISTICS DEPARTMENT (TEL. NO. : 5-8234941).

THE

TO THE CENSUS

AND

TABLE 1: