Retail trade rises 2.0% in euro area

Some member states steam ahead

Retail trade volume in the euro area rose by 2.0% year on year in August 2005, and by 2.2% in the EU25.

Compared with July 2005, retail sales rose by 0.9% in the euro area and by 0.7% in the EU25.

The non-food sector rose more quickly than the food sector, with sales of non-food up by 2.9% year on year in the euro area. Sales of food, beverages and tobacco, meanwhile, rose by 1.5%.

New member states showed the strongest performances, with retail sales in Latvia rising by 22.6% year on year, Lithuania by 14.0%, Slovenia by 13.8% and Slovakia by 11.6%.

Dragged down by Germany

However, a number of old member states also saw stronger than average growth, with Denmark rising by 9.2%, Belgium by 6.7%, Sweden 6.3%, Finland 6.2%, France 4.1%, Poland 3.7% and Spain 2.5%.

Slower growth was reported in Portugal (1.2%) and the UK (0.9%).

The overall figure for the EU 25 was pulled down by a drop in retail sales for Germany, down by 0.8% year on year, and by a fall of 4.4% in Luxembourg.

In August 2005, compared with July 2005, “food, drinks and tobacco” grew by 0.8% in the euro-zone and by 0.4% in the EU25. The non food sector increased by 1.1% and 0.8% respectively.