What worries our shopkeepers

Have you been shopping on line again?

If so, you should realise that you have been giving your old shopkeepers sleepless nights.

But they are fighting back.

They are planning to upgrade their shops, to attract you to their stores, once again.

All of this  –  and more – shows up  in the results of a new Dun and Bradstreet survey .

Its business expectations survey shows that 56 per cent of Australia’s retailers now expect that on line shopping will have an adverse effect on their operations.

Especially as they have  many expenses which their on line competitors do not have.

Dun and Bradstreet’s CEO, Christine Christian, warns that their plight is likely to get worse if they don’t respond to this challenge.

However, the survey noted a substantial increase in investment expectations.

This suggests that Australia’s high street retailers are planning to brighten up their shops, to draw their old customers back.

The survey also showed that retailers:-

• Sales Expectations are at their highest level in twelve months but remain 15 points below this time last year

• Profit Expectations continue to recover from the first negative index in two years but remain more than 20 points below this time last year

• Employment Expectations are also the strongest for twelve months and are only two points below the previous peak for March quarter 2011

• Investment Expectations have risen four points and are now significantly above the long-range average but are seven points below the previous peak in December quarter 2010.

Meanwhile another survey, conducted by the Australian Industry Group, shows that the nation’s manufacturing sector is finally “nudging positive territory, recording a slight expansion in its activity levels.

Basic metals manufacturing, paper printing and publishing  and transport equipment sub-sectors are leadingng the improvement.

But fabricated metals, chemicals, construction materials and textile operations are still lagging.