Cyprus retail sales slip in July

After a fairly strong run this year, retail sales slipped in July, as volumes fell by 0.8% compared with July 2004.

The main change in fortunes came from sales excluding food, beverages and tobacco at non-specialised stores and, for the first time, a drop in sales of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics after a very strong run this year average over 28%.

Sales of furniture, household and electrical items also slipped for the first time this year, while books, newspapers and stationery also declined for the first time since January.

For the first seven months as a whole, however, retail sales are quite buoyant. In January-July they rose by 5.0% compared with the same period of the previous year.

Fiona Mullen