Australia’s slow economy puts brakes on online retail

Online retailing has been belted by Australia’s economic woes, with November’s sales figures recording the slowest monthly and annual growth since the series was first compiled.

And some bricks-and-mortar retailers are also doing it tough, with shares in outdoor equipment retailer Kathmandu plunging 20 percent after poor Christmas sales forced the company to issue a profit warning.

According to National Australia Bank, not only are November’s online sales down 0.2 percent on October, they are only 3.9 percent higher year-on-year.