AUSSIE shoppers are continuing to spend up a storm in the post-Christmas sales, with retailers around the country on track to take $16.8 billion from Boxing Day until January 15, according to figures by the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) and Roy Morgan Research.

ARA executive director, Russell Zimmerman, said consumers have embraced the annual post-Christmas and January sales this year, taking the opportunity to stock up on bargains not normally seen at other times of the year.

“While the annual Christmas sales period officially kicked on Boxing Day, we’ve seen shoppers continue their spending frenzy right throughout the period and into the New Year,” Mr Zimmerman said.

“While initially on December 26 we saw bigger ticket items walking off the shelves, now the focus has swapped to soft goods such as apparel and footwear, while household items have also been popular.

“Department stores have also had particularly strong foot traffic, with our figures anticipating a 4.7 percent increase for the category compared to last year,” he said.

Around $1 billion is set to be spent in department stores before January 15, second only in growth to the ‘other’ category, with will grow by 6.1 percent to $2.3 billion.

Food spending, which was boosted last week by shoppers stocking up on food and beverages for New Year’s Eve parties and holiday barbeques is on target to meet an expected $6.8 billion in purchases.

Victoria will see the lion’s share of the post-Christmas shopping growth, up 5.6 percent to $4.2 billion across the 21-day period tracked by ARA and Roy Morgan, followed by NSW at 3.8 percent growth and $5.3 billion.

“It’s great to see shoppers out in force at retail stores, in what is typically the busiest spending period of the year,” Mr Zimmerman said.

ARA ROY MORGAN POST-CHRISTMAS 2015/16 SALES PREDICTIONS

December 26, 2015 – January 15, 2016

2015/16 Post-Christmas Sales Growth by State

(ARA/ROY MORGAN)

2015/16 Post-Christmas Sales Growth by Category

(ARA/ROY MORGAN)

About the Australian Retailers Association:

Founded in 1903, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) is the retail industry’s peak representative body representing Australia’s $284 billion sector, which employs more than 1.2 million people. The ARA works to ensure retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating and saving money for its 5,000 independent and national retail members throughout Australia. For more information,

Visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.

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INSTITUTE of Public Accountants (IPA) chief executive officer, Andrew Conway has been appointed as chairperson of the Professional Accountancy Organisation Development Committee (PAODC) of the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants (CAPA) for the next three year term.

The PAODC, a committee under the auspices of CAPA has a mandate to promote and facilitate the establishment and strengthening of professional accountancy organisations in support of the public interest.

“On behalf of the IPA Board of Directors, I would like to congratulate Andrew for this important appointment,” said IPA president, Wendy Leegel.

“The IPA is very committed to the objectives of CAPA and to supporting the development of the profession in our region. 

“The IPA is very proud of Andrew’s achievements and his contribution to global leadership and governance within the profession,” said Ms Leegel.

About the Institute of Public Accountants

The IPA, formed in 1923, is one of Australia’s three legally recognised professional accounting bodies.  In late 2014, the IPA acquired the Institute of Financial Accountants in the UK and formed the IPA Group, with more than with more than 35,000 members and students in over 65 countries.  The IPA is a member of the International Federation of Accountants, the Accounting Professional and Ethical Standards Board and the Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants.  The IPA was recognised in 2012 as Australia’s most innovative accounting organisation and listed in the top 20 in the 2012 BRW Most Innovative Companies List. 

www.publicaccountants.org.au

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NATIONAL resource industry employer group, AMMA (Australian Mines and Metals Association) Executive Director for Policy & Public Affairs, Scott Barklamb made a statement in early December criticising Labor's handling of union corruption.

Mr Barklamb said the December 7 announcement by Bill Shorten and Brendan O’Connor on trade union corruption "is an overdue and inadequate response to governance failures and criminality that are increasingly tarnishing Australia’s trade union movement and harming hard working union members".

"Mr Shorten claims that Labor has zero tolerance for criminality and corruption in the union movement, but actions speak louder than words," Mr Barklamb said.

"For more than two years the Opposition and their fellow addicts to union funding, the Greens, have held up essential reforms to how unions are governed and overseen by regulators.

"These reforms would have made a real difference. As Labor has dissembled, prevaricated and blocked reform, they have unfortunately in effect run protection for the sociopathic fringe of the union movement that is robbing hard working union members and displaying wanton disregard for the law.

"By repeatedly blocking the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Amendment Bill 2014), Labor has enabled parts of the trade union movement to perpetuate financial and administrative practices that would be completely unacceptable in corporate Australia.

"The need to urgently beef up oversight and enforcement is clear. Recent days have seen the arrests of senior CFMEU officials in Victoria for alleged blackmail."

Mr Barklamb said this came on top of evidence of:

• Officials and employees of the National Union of Workers (NUW) ripping off hundreds of thousands of dollars of member money to spend on jewellery, tattoos, dating websites and concert tickets;
• The destruction of union financial and other records that may have been sought by the Heydon Royal Commission; and
• Substantial misappropriation of funds not only in the HSUA, but also in other unions.

"Following today’s overdue and underwhelming acceptance that there are bad apples within the union movement that must be dealt with, AMMA calls on Bill Shorten and Brendan O’Connor to demonstrate they are genuine and not concocting a further stunt to delay reform," Mr Barklamb said.

"If it is serious about reform and stamping out the ‘bad apples’, the Opposition should commit to urgently passing the new rules for the governance of registered unions and employer associations currently before Parliament when it resumes in the new year."

www.amma.org.au

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FARMERS and other interested stakeholders are encouraged to have their say on regulation affecting Australia’s agriculture sector, with the release of an issues paper today as part of a Productivity Commission inquiry that will look at ways to reduce unnecessary regulatory burden across agriculture.

Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, Barnaby Joyce, said the Coalition Government was delivering on its commitment under the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper to make doing business easier and to cut red tape for farmers.

“Improving the efficiency and effectiveness of regulation is important for all sectors of our economy — but particularly for our $58 billion a year agriculture sector, where our competitiveness in international markets is crucial to profitability,” Minister Joyce said.

“Sensible regulation has important roles to play, such as protecting consumers from unsafe food and supporting our agricultural exports. But poorly administered or implemented regulation can have significant impacts on the profitability and productivity of our farm businesses, and can undermine the sector’s global competitiveness.

“This inquiry will identify priority areas for removing or reducing unnecessary red tape to improve the sector’s productivity and competitiveness, and will also take into account regulation in key supply chains.

“I encourage farmers and anyone else with an interest in our agriculture sector to get involved and have their say.

“In undertaking its inquiry, the Productivity Commission will also be considering submissions received during the development of the Ag White Paper and White Paper on Developing Northern Australia, as well as other relevant material in the public domain.

“This is just one way the Ag White Paper is creating a better business environment for farmers—we have already delivered fairer taxation arrangements, established an ACCC Agriculture Enforcement and Engagement Unit, and have commenced work to streamline regulation of agricultural and veterinary chemicals.”

To find out more about the Productivity Commission inquiry into the Regulation of Agriculture, including how to make a submission or to read the issues paper, visit pc.gov.au/inquiries/current/agriculture.​

To read the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper, visit agwhitepaper.agriculture.gov.au.

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