2019 growth forecast for retail sales increased to 4.9%

Raya sales: A file picture showing women shopping for new clothes for Hari Raya at a shopping mall in Petaling Jaya. RGM says higher growth expected during the second quarter of 2019 is mainly due to the Hari Raya period.

PETALING JAYA: Retail Group Malaysia (RGM) is revising upwards its 2019 growth forecast for the country’s retail sales to 4.9% from 4.5% previously, following the better-than-expected growth rate in the first quarter and a pick-up in the second quarter.

Despite weak internal and external economic environment, the higher growth expected during the second quarter of 2019 was mainly due to the Hari Raya period.