Retail trade volume down in both EU, eurozone in March

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) - The volume of retail trade in both the EU and the eurozone fell by 0.1% month-on-month in March, Eurostat announced on Wednesday.

The largest monthly drops in the total retail trade volume were seen in Slovenia (2%), Estonia (1.3%), and Slovakia (0.9%), while the highest increases were seen in Malta (2%), Belgium and Croatia (both 1.4%), and Bulgaria (1.1%).

The retail trade volume narrowed for food, drinks, tobacco, and non-food products by 0.1%, while rising 0.4% for automotive fuel in specialized stores in the euro area in March.

In the EU side, retail trade contracted by 0.4% for food, drinks, tobacco, went up by 0.1% for non-food products, and rose by 0.4% for automotive fuel.

On a yearly basis, retail sales rose by 1.5% in the euro area and by 1.4% in the EU.

The highest annual increases in the total retail trade volume were seen in Luxembourg (9.4%), Bulgaria (5.4%), and the Greek Cypriot Administration (5%), while the largest decreases were in Slovakia (2.9%), Poland (1.8%), and Italy (1.4%).

The eurozone/euro area, or EA19, represents member states that use the single currency – the euro – while the EU27 includes all member countries of the bloc.