Singapore's retail sales grew 1.7% in September from a year earlier, more than double August's 0.8% pace, as new mobile phones and higher pump prices lifted takings, the Department of Statistics said on Nov. 5. On a seasonally adjusted basis, sales fell 1.0% from August.

The split matters for investors in Singapore retail landlords, consumer stocks and the local dollar. The annual gain came mostly from a handful of categories with their own drivers, a phone launch cycle and fuel costs, rather than from broad spending. The monthly drop points to weaker footfall in physical stores during a month when haze blanketed the island.

Phones and petrol carry Singapore's retail sales

Retailers of computer and telecommunications equipment reported a 16.5% rise in sales from a year earlier, up from 11.0% in August. The statistics department put the gain down mainly to demand for mobile phones. Zavier Wong, a market analyst at eToro, told Inside Retail Asia that the launch of Apple's new iPhones drove the category, and that he did not expect the lift to repeat in October.

Petrol service stations posted a 6.5% increase on higher fuel prices, and furniture and household equipment sales rose 5.3%. Cosmetics, toiletries and medical goods grew 6.0%, slower than August's 10.7%. Supermarkets and hypermarkets gained 2.2%.

The weak spots were in everyday and discretionary shopping. Mini-marts and convenience stores saw sales fall 5.6%, department stores 3.4%, optical goods and books 2.5%, and wearing apparel and footwear 1.5%. Motor vehicle sales dropped 2.4% from a year earlier. Stripping out cars, parts and accessories, retail sales grew 2.5%, compared with 1.7% in August.

The total value of retail sales in September was an estimated S$4.3 billion, or about S$3.6 billion excluding motor vehicles, the department said.

Haze and the monthly decline

Most industries recorded lower seasonally adjusted sales in September than in August. Cosmetics, toiletries and medical goods fell 10.5% on the month, recreational goods 5.7% and optical goods and books 5.6%. Excluding motor vehicles, seasonally adjusted sales dropped 1.8%. Department stores and motor vehicle dealers were the exceptions, with monthly gains of 4.2% and 3.5%.

Wong linked the decline to haze, noting that September brought the first unhealthy air quality readings across Singapore since 2019. "Consumers will avoid wandering through the streets in those conditions as much as possible," he told Inside Retail Asia. The haze episode also prompted regulators to press banks on their palm oil lending.

Shoppers moved more of their spending online. Online purchases made up 17.7% of total retail sales in September, up from 15.6% in August, according to the release. Excluding motor vehicles, the online share was 20.8%. Online channels accounted for 63.2% of sales at computer and telecommunications retailers, 39.4% at furniture and household equipment stores and 12.6% at supermarkets and hypermarkets.

Food and beverage sales recover

Sales at food and beverage outlets rose 1.0% from a year earlier, reversing a 1.8% decline in August. Fast food outlets led with growth of 7.6%, and restaurants gained 2.6%. Cafes were nearly flat at 0.1%. Food caterers slipped 0.2%, and food courts and other eating places fell 4.2%.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, food and beverage sales grew 0.8% from August. Cafes rose 3.6% and caterers 3.0%, while food courts recorded the sector's only monthly decline, of 2.4%. Total food and beverage sales were an estimated S$1.6 billion, with 21.1% made online, compared with 20.9% in August.

The figures are in nominal terms, so part of the gain in categories such as petrol reflects prices rather than volumes. The release put August's annual growth at 0.8% and its seasonally adjusted monthly decline at 0.9%.

Wong said he expects the October data to resemble September's, with physical stores soft and online channels busy. He added that annual comparisons will be harder over the next two months because retail sales grew more than 4% in both October and November of 2025.