BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Euro zone retail sales rose as expected month-on-month in September but fell lower than expected year-on-year after a powerful upward revision for August, data showed on Tuesday, underlining sustained consumer demand within the third quarter.
The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said retail sales within the 19 countries sharing the euro rose an expected 0.4% month-on-month for a 0.6% year-on-year fall, which was much smaller than the 1.3% expected by economists in a Reuters poll.
Eurostat also revised upwards retail sales for August to 0.0% month-on-month from the previously reported -0.3% and to -1.4% from -2.0% in annual terms.
Retail sales are seen as a great indication of consumer demand, which is in focus due to expectations that the euro zone will slide right into a recession in the approaching months due to a surge in energy prices brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A flash estimate showed euro zone GDP growth slowed sharply within the third quarter to 0.2% quarter-on-quarter but remained in positive territory.
The monthly increase in September was driven mainly by purchases through the web, which rose 2.6% on the month after a 4.1% monthly slump in the course of the holiday season in August. Conversely, sales of petrol which rose 2.1% on the month in August when people travel for vacation, fell 0.6% in September.
In year-on-year terms, the general result was lowered by a 2.4% fall within the sales of food, drinks and tobacco and a 0.3% decline in sales of non-food products, which was not offset by a 3.7% increase within the sales of fuels for cars.
(Reporting by Jan Strupczewski)
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