By Bryan Lee, Economics Correspondent

RISING inflation and fears of a slowing economy kept Singapore shoppers at bay in May, with retail sales growth slowing despite strong increases in average wages.

Shops, supermarkets and other retailers recorded a lower-than-expected 4.8 per cent rise in receipts from a year earlier, a marked decrease from April's 7.5 per cent surge.

Analysts said tills are likely to stay quieter as the global credit crisis escalates.

For their part, shopkeepers called for a cut in the goods and services tax (GST).

'If we reduce the GST by even 1 percentage point, that might help with inflation,' Singapore Retailers Association president Jannie Tay told Bloomberg News on Tuesday.

'When consumer confidence and the economy are down, people certainly will be more careful about spending,' she said.

The data, published on Tuesday by Department of Statistics, was lower than a 6.2 per cent median in a Bloomberg poll of 16 economists.

Much of the slump came from lower car sales, down 1.9 per cent, as rising pump and certificate of entitlement prices kept showrooms quiet. Excluding vehicle sales, retail sales were up 7.9 per cent.

Read the full story in Wednesday's edition of The Straits Times.