Cyprus retail trade tumbles by 15% y/y in March

Retail sales volumes collapsed by a provisional 15% compared with the same month of the previous year in March.

Volumes in February fell by a revised 12.1%.

Bank were closed for nearly two weeks from March 15 after Eurozone leaders decided to hit all bank deposits, a decision subsequently reversed to hit deposits over EUR 100,000 including non-savings and company accounts.

While food sales rose by 3.4% as people rushed to stock up in expectation of disaster, sales of clothing and footwear dropped by 36.8%, their steepest decline on record.

Another steep decline was recorded by sales of electrical goods and furniture, which fell by 29.9%, having dropped by 37.9% in February.  

Fuel sales also tumbled by 12.7%.  

The value index in March fell by a provisional 12.7%, after a drop of 10.5% in February.

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