Rome, Feb. 8, (dpa-AFX/GNA) – Driven by a fall in non-food items, Italian retail sales fell a monthly 0.2% in December, reversing the 0.8% increase seen in November compared to October, the Italian statistics office ISTAT reported on Wednesday.
The December decline was lower than economists’ forecast of a 0.8% fall. Sales of non-food goods fell 0.4% monthly in December, while sales of food products showed an increase of 0.1% versus a 0.9% gain in November.
Elevated inflationary pressures squeezed the budgets of households at the end of the year, resulting in lower spending. Recent data showed that consumer price inflation remaining in the double-digits, with January inflation up 10.1%. However that was lower than December’s 11.6% increase.
On a yearly basis, the value of retail sales climbed at a slower pace of 3.4% in December, following a 4.4% increase a month ago. Sales have been rising since March 2021.
The overall annual growth was mainly attributed to a 5.8% rise in sales of food products. Online sales were only 0.3% higher in December compared to last year, much slower than the 4.3% annual rise in November. Data also showed that the volume of retail sales contracted 0.7% monthly and by 4.4% yearly at the end of the year.
Overall retail sales value increased by 4.6% in 2022 compared to 2021. Meanwhile, sales volume fell 0.8% due to a 4.2% drop in food goods, which was not offset by a 1.9% increase in non-food products, the agency said.
GNA