Blue Christmas for retailers as sales drop

Spending power: People at a money changer in Singapore. The strong Singapore dollar has prompted many people to spend abroad rather than at the city-state. — AFP

SINGAPORE: Retail sales remained subdued last December, partly due to more residents travelling abroad during the year-end school holidays, say analysts.

Takings declined 2.9% in that period, on the back of a 0.5% decline the previous month, the Statistics Department noted on Wednesday.