S. Korea April retail sales drop

SEOUL (Reuters): South Korea’s retail sales shrank in April, preliminary government data showed Tuesday, underscoring lacklustre private consumption as slowing economic growth and elevated oil prices continue to suppress spending.

Sales at the country’s top department stores fell 3.8 percent in April from a year earlier after gains in the previous two months, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said in a report.

Sales at the country’s top discount stores fell 2.4 percent in April from a year earlier after rising 2.3 percent in March, the data showed.

Sales of locally produced automobiles fell 6.8 percent in April, the ministry said, compared with a 9.9 percent decline in March.

The finance ministry reiterated the view that sales would improve gradually, citing stronger consumer sentiment data and new products like smart phones and cars to be released in coming months, though it added the euro zone crisis and high oil prices may continue to weigh on consumption.