Taiwan Retail Sales Rebound in August After Four-Month Decline

Retail sales in Taiwan edged up 0.4% year-on-year in August 2025, ending a four-month consecutive decline and rebounding from a 3.6% drop in July. The recovery was mainly driven by faster sales growth in cultural and recreation goods in specialized stores (9.2% vs 7.6% in July) and general merchandise stores (2.9% vs 0.8%), alongside slower declines in automobiles and motorcycles (-4.5% vs -20.2%), communication equipment and household appliances (-1.5% vs -3.7%), fuel and related products (-7.2% vs -8.8%), and household appliances and goods in specialized stores (-0.6% vs -2.3%). In contrast, sales rose at a slower pace in retail trade not in stores or stalls (4.5% vs 5.0%), electronic shopping and mail-order houses (6.0% vs 7.1%), and other retail sales (7.0% vs 7.3%), while construction materials (-1.3% vs 3.8%) reversed to a decline. On a monthly basis, retail activity rose 0.8% in August, rebounding from a 0.4% drop in July.