Retail sales down in EU, eurozone

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - The retail sales volume in December fell 0.8% in the euro area and 0.7% in the EU year-on-year, official figures released on Tuesday showed.

In the euro area, the volume of retail trade dropped 6.2% for automotive fuels and 1% for food, drinks and tobacco, while it grew 0.1% for non-food products, Eurostat said.

On the EU side, the retail trade volume lost 6.3% for automotive fuels and 0.7% for food, drinks and tobacco, while it rose 0.4% for non-food products.

The largest drops were seen in Slovenia (minus 15%), Estonia (minus 4.2%), and Slovakia (minus 3.8%).

The largest rises were seen in Croatia (8.9%), Greek Cyprus (3.8%), and Spain (3.4%).

On a monthly basis, the volume of retail trade fell 1.1% in the euro area and 1% in the EU.