Business turnover in Australia has fallen for the first time in seven months.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed a fall of 0.1 percent, in seasonally adjusted terms, in May.
ABS Head of Business Statistics Robert Ewing said the Arts and recreation services industry had the largest fall, down 5.5 percent, driven by a 11.2 percent fall in gambling activities.
“This is the first (overall) fall in monthly business turnover since October 2024,” Mr Ewing said.
He said other notable falls were for Manufacturing, down 1.3 percent, and Retail trade, down 0.8 percent.
“Softening the fall, we saw rises in Electricity, gas, water and waste services, up 1.7 percent, and Wholesale trade, up 1.1 percent.”
Mr Ewing said, compared to May 2024, turnover was higher for 10 of the 13 industries included in the indicator, with business turnover 3.3 percent higher than in May 2024.
