Investors trim rate rise bets as retail sales growth hits 2½-year low

Annual growth in retail sales has fallen to its lowest level since the pandemic as cash-strapped households tighten their belts, but economists expect tax cuts on July 1 to breathe new life into consumer spending.

Retail sales grew by just 0.8 per cent in the year to March, after spending unexpectedly contracted 0.4 per cent last month in seasonally adjusted terms, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday.