Retailers affected by job losses

MOST retailers, apart from supermarket operators, had lower turnovers this year due to the downturn in the economy, says the Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Chamber president Rio Fiocco attributed it to a decline in discretionary spending because some people had lost their jobs due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) situation.
“Retail shelves are reasonably well. Supermarket businesses have done quite well this year,” Fiocco said.
“This is because people still need to eat and so on. But other businesses’ turnover was down a bit on last year, such as hardware.
“Discretionary spending is slightly lower than last year because some people have lost their jobs because of the downturn in the economy. This is a result of the Coronavirus situation.”
PNG Manufacturers Council chief executive officer Chey Scovell had said that “weaker than expected sales and sharp increases in operational costs put businesses under a lot of pressure”.
“Local manufactures are doing their best to maintain their employees despite a flat market and increasing costs.
“Typically, from Independence Day to Christmas, there is an upswing in consumer spending. Acknowledging the market conditions, many manufacturers had downgraded expectation.
“Of concern was that despite lowered expectations, actual sales were still less than and there has been no increase as we lead into year’s end.”