Eurozone, EU's retail sales down year-on-year in April

Hungary, Estonia, and Slovakia post largest annual declines in retail trade volume

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) – The retail trade volume dropped by 2.6% in the euro area and 2.9% in the EU year-on-year in April, official figures showed on Tuesday.

The volume of retail trade fell 4.4% for food, drinks and tobacco, 1.8% for automotive fuels, and 1.1% for non-food products in eurozone, Eurostat said.

"In the EU, the retail trade volume decreased by 4.6% for food, drinks and tobacco, by 2.3% for automotive fuels and by 1.5% for non-food products," the statistics agency added.

Among member states, the largest declines were posted by Hungary with 12.6%, Estonia with 10%, and Slovakia with 9.8%.

The highest increases were seen in the Greek Cypriot administration (9.4%), Spain (7.8%), and Luxembourg (6%).

On a monthly basis, retail sales volume was unchanged in the euro area and up slightly by 0.1% in the EU-27.

Kaynak: