South Africa's retail sales climbed by 5.6% year-on-year in July 2025, the fastest increase in three months, accelerating from a 1.7% advance in June. The rise was largely driven by textiles, clothing, footwear, and leather goods retailers (+10.0%); general dealers (+3.3%); all ‘other’ retailers (+11.9%); and hardware, paint, and glass retailers (+13.2%). On a monthly basis, retail sales rose by 2.1% in July, marking the strongest increase since December 2023, following a revised 0.1% decline in the prior month. Retail trade sales increased by 3.8% in the three months ended July 2025 compared with the three months ended July 2024.