EU: Retail trade volume down 5.1% in January

ANKARA

The EU's seasonally adjusted retail trade volume fell 5.1% in January on a monthly basis, the EU’s statistical authority said on Thursday.

Last December, the retail trade volume rose 1.8% in the euro area and 1.4% in the EU, Eurostat said.

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

In January 2021, compared with January 2020, the calendar-adjusted retail trade volume fell 6.4% in the euro area and 5.4% in the EU.

In the EU, the volume of retail trade shrank 15.7% for automotive fuel and 11.5% for non-food products (mail and internet orders rose 40%), while climbing 5.4% for food, drinks, and tobacco.

Among member states, the largest drops in total retail trade volume were seen in Austria and Slovakia (both -16.8%), Slovenia (-13.0%), and Portugal (-10.9%).

The largest increases were posted in Estonia (8.0%), Belgium (4.2%), and Finland (3.8%).​​​​​​​