Nab Online Retail Sales Index - Business Research and Insights ...

NAB Online Retail Sales Index
6
Chart 12: Share of spending by state
(year to October 2012)
40
30
20
10
0
NSW
VIC
QLD
WA
SA
TAS
ACT
NT
NSW
VIC
QLD
WA
SA
TAS
ACT
NT
Share of spend (%) Per capita (index)
Chart 13: Growth of spending by state
(%, yoy)
40
30
20
10
0
Nov-11 Apr-12 Sep-12
WA NT QLD SA
Chart 13B: Growth of spending by state
(%, yoy)
40
30
20
10
0
Nov-11 Apr-12 Sep-12
VIC NSW TAS ACT
140
120
100
80
60
Per capita spending remains
dominated by the 30s and 40s
The share of spending by age group has
remained quite stable since we commenced tracking
online retail sales. In an absolute sense, those in their
40s and younger account for the majority of sales – at
around 23% for each group in the year to October
2012 (chart 10). However, on a per capita basis, the
bulk of spending is recorded among those in their 30s
and 40s – with the under 30s age group recording
below average spending – likely a reflection of their
relative lack of purchasing power.
Compared with some notable divergence in growth
rates in 2011, trends in growth rates by age group have
been much more uniform over the last year – although
the under 30s have recorded marginally stronger
growth rates than other age groups for much of this
time (chart 11).
Per capita spending strongest
in the ACT, NT and WA
At a state level, online spending is dominated by the
largest states – with New South Wales (NSW), Victoria
(VIC) and Queensland (QLD) accounting for 76% of
total online retail spending (chart 12). However, on
a per capita basis, the ACT has the strongest level of
spending, followed by the Northern Territory (NT) and
Western Australia (WA).
Growth trends for NSW, VIC, South Australia (SA) and
the ACT have been relatively uniform in 2012 – and
in line with the national average (chart 13). Generally,
growth has been marginally stronger in QLD and also
stronger than average in the NT – although these
rates have been highly volatile, due in part to the
small population. In terms of growth, WA continues to
outperform the bulk of the country – at 36% year-onyear
in October.
“The Group Buying sector of online
continues to see rapid decline, but
we are bound to see other new
online formats emerge in 2012.”
Tony Davis, Quantium