KUALA LUMPUR, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia's retail industry sales slipped 0.2 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023 amid the rising cost of living.
Retail Group Malaysia (RGM) said in a statement on Monday that this latest quarterly result did not meet the market expectation of 2.1 percent growth as the higher cost of living had a negative impact on the purchasing power of Malaysian consumers.
For the full year of 2023, Malaysia's retail industry reported a positive growth rate of 2.2 percent. This final annual growth figure, however, was also below market expectations.
According to RGM, the Malaysian retail industry is expected to grow 7.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024 due to the Chinese New Year festival and school holidays.
RGM also revised its annual growth rate in retail sales for 2024 to 4 percent, an upward adjustment of 0.5 percent from the projection made in November 2023.
"For 2024, the biggest challenge for the Malaysian retail industry remains the rising cost of living of Malaysian consumers," said RGM. ■
