According to the latest data available, the total retail sales have risen by just 0.1 per cent during the month of May in Australia as consumers remained cautious about spending their money.

The rise in an improvement from a revised 0.1 per cent decrease in April but is much below analyst expectations of a 0.3 per cent rise in retail spending in the country. The retail sales for March were also revised from 0.4 per cent to fall of 0.6 per cent. The data showed that Australians spent a seasonally adjusted $21.8 billion in May.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics said that the retail sales remained below expectations even as the interest rates remained low in the country. The interest rates were cut several times since November 2011 in order to boost the domestic economy and consumer demand. The Reserve Bank of Australia had kept the interest rates unchanged this month indicating that the sectors are responding in a possible manner to the low interest rates.

The Australian dollar rose moderately following the release of the data, which was released along with May trade balance figures. The currency is now trading at around 91.7 US cents.