Eurozone Retail Sales Fall Considerably More Than Anticipated In Aug

Eurozone retail sales fell considerably more than anticipated in August, information displayed on Wednesday, highlighting more fragile consumer interest as inflation stays high.

The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said retail sales in the 20 countries sharing the euro fell 1.2% month-on-month for a 21% year-on-year decrease in August.

Financial specialists surveyed by Reuters had expected a 0.3% month fall and a 1.2% year-on-year decline.

The monthly fall was caused principally by a sharp drop in mail requests and shopping on the web which fell 4.5% and a drop in the offer of petroleum, down 3.0%.

Year-on-year, the sales of fuel was significantly more articulated at 7.7% and there was a 3.2% fall in the deals of food beverages and tobacco.
Eurozone inflation was 5.3% in August, well over the European Central Bank’s objective of 2.0%.