South Africa's retail sales decreased for the second successive month in October, data from Statistics South Africa showed on Wednesday.
Retail sales fell 0.6 percent year-on-year in October, following a 0.4 percent decline in September. Economists had forecast a 0.5 percent decrease.
Sales of hardware, paint, and glass fell the most by 4.8 percent over the year, followed by pharmaceuticals and medical goods, cosmetics, and toiletries with a 3.4 percent drop.
On a monthly basis, retail sales rose a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent in October after a 0.2 percent gain in the prior month. This was the second consecutive monthly increase.
In the three months to October, retail sales contracted 1.4 percent from the preceding three months.
