By Tuba Sahin
ANKARA (AA) - Euro area retail sales declined for the third straight month in August, according to the EU's statistical office on Thursday.
The volume of retail trade was down by 0.3% in the euro area as high inflation continues to cut consumer affordability, fresh Eurostat data showed.
Sales of food, drinks and tobacco decreased by 0.8% from a month ago, while they increased by 0.2% for non-food products and by 3.2% for automotive fuels.
On an annual basis, retail sales in the single currency zone dove 2% from August 2021.
For the EU, retail sales also decreased 0.2% month-on-month in August.
Among the 27-member states, the Netherlands registered the largest decline with minus 2.2%, followed by Germany with minus 1.3% and Malta minus 1.1%.
The largest hikes were seen in Slovenia (7.0%), Luxembourg (3.8%) and Ireland (3.5%).
Compared to a year ago, the EU's retail sales fell by 1.3% this August, data showed.