Apenisa Waqairadovu 
[File Photo]
The total sales achieved by wholesale and retail businesses in the country for last year stood at $6,890.2 million.
The statistics released by the Fiji Bureau of Statistics reveal that total sales increased by 4.6 percent when compared to the previous year.
It says the increase in total sales was driven by the rise in fuels, sales of motor vehicles, motor vehicle parts and accessories, and hardware items.
Sales from automotive fuels increased by eight percent, equivalent to $173.2 million, while sales from food, beverages, and tobacco stood at $42.3 million, an increase of 2.1 percent.
The statistics also show that the purchase of motor vehicles increased by 17.8 percent, equivalent to $53.3 million.
There was also an increase in sales of household appliances, furniture, textiles, clothing, and footwear.
There was a 0.6 percent decrease in the sales of pharmaceutical supplies.
The survey only covers registered businesses engaged in wholesale and retail trade.
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