BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - Driven by food and auto fuel turnover, Eurozone retail sales registered a marginal growth, which was weaker than expected in November, reflecting subdued household consumption towards the end of 2024.
Retail sales grew 0.1 percent on month in November after easing 0.3 percent in October, data from Eurostat showed Thursday. Sales were expected to climb 0.3 percent.
Sales of food, drinks and tobacco rose 0.1 percent, while non-food product sales declined 0.6 percent. Automotive fuel in specialised stores increased 0.8 percent from the previous month.
Year-on-year growth in retail sales softened to 1.2 percent from 2.1 percent in October.
Retail sales in the EU rebounded 0.2 percent in November after a 0.1 percent drop a month ago. Annually, retail sales growth weakened to 1.5 percent from 2.2 percent.
Among member countries of the EU, the highest monthly increases in the total retail trade volume were recorded in Cyprus, Bulgaria, Denmark and Latvia. Meanwhile, the largest decreases were observed in Belgium, Germany and Spain.
Capital Economics' economist Andrew Kenningham said euro area household consumption is likely to grow at a moderate pace this year.
Rising real incomes, continued employment growth and falling interest rates should support consumption and in some countries immigration is boosting spending, he noted.
However, the economist cautioned that there are downside risks to the forecast of average quarterly consumption growth of 0.3 percent this year.
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