3rdPartyFeeds News

Dow Jones Newswires: German retail sales slump a weaker-than-expected 1.3% in February, amid higher inflation

Retail sales declined 1.3% on month in February in real terms, after a revised 0.1% increase in January, German statistics office Destatis said Friday. Read More...

German retail sales came in weaker than expected in February, as rising prices curbed spending amid high inflation.

Retail sales declined 1.3% on month in February in real terms, after a revised 0.1% increase in January, German statistics office Destatis said Friday.

Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires expected a stagnation in sales.

On an annual basis, sales declined 7.1% in real terms, though it increased 2.6% in nominal terms, with the difference reflecting the significant price increases in retail trade across the past 12 months, Destatis said.

Food-retail sales rose 0.2% on month in February, continuing a recovery after a sales slumped at the end of 2022. Food sales, one of the areas most affected by high inflation, still fell by 7.6% in real terms year on year. Real, nonfood-retail sales fell 0.3% in February on month, Destatis said.

Write to Ed Frankl at [email protected] and Andreas Plecko at [email protected]

Read More